Fade Away
by Danielle18
Summary: Eight years after the events of Breaking Dawn and the time has come for Jacob to be something more to Renesmee than just a friend. At the same time the Volturi have great things planned for Edward and Bella's gifted child....
1. Chapter 1

**_Fade Away_**

Jacob wiped his greasy hands on his dark denim jeans. His eyes instantly going to the door as he smelt her.

He couldn't describe her scent. It was wholly unique to her, she smelled like the morning, like grass and lilacs and... Renesmee. She had probably only just crossed the border, but he was that attuned to her...

He pulled on his black t-shirt that was sitting on the table. Covered in grease, but covering his naked torso.

He wondered if Bella and Edward had realized her absence yet. It was ten o'clock, but the darkness mattered very little to the Cullens. They would have all been in the big house, having left Renesmee to her room in the cottage. Alice wouldn't have predicted her departure, it caused Jacob a small jolt of joy as he thought that Renesmee was a blind-spot, like him, when it came to Alice's predictions.

But they would realize she was gone. Bella still had the odd tendency to check up on her daughter while she slept. He supposed it was because, while Renesmee looked to be about sixteen, she was still only eight years old in Edward and Bella's minds. Judging from Nahuel's experience, she should have matured two years earlier, but Carlisle said that it might have been six and a half years for Nahuel but eight for Renesmee. Something about males growing more rapidly than females?

They would realize her escape soon enough, and they would guess soon enough where she had escaped to.

He also had a fair idea of who they would blame for her sneaking out at night.

Never mind that it would give Edward and Bella a mild theoretical heart-attack. It would have all of the Cullen family jumping down Jacob's throat...

"She is still too young" Bella warned months earlier.

"I'm not disagreeing with you" Jacob bit out.

Edward had snarled at him and it took Jacob a moment to compose himself.

"She isn't a child... she _is_ technically sixteen..." Carlisle had interjected.

Edward and Bella both threw him a warning glance and he sat down silently.

"She's not ready" Edward warned.

"I know that!" Jacob spat, "what do you think I am?"

The second he'd said it, Jacob winced. Who was he kidding? Edward could read his mind. He knew that Jacob had been noticing Renesmee's new maturity. The swell of her hips, her lithe frame, the way she came up to his chin now, her tufts of copper curls, those blue cashmere sweaters that showed off her...

Edward let out another low hiss. Bella, not knowing for certain what Edward was hearing but getting the gist, let rip with a matching growl.

"We know it's difficult for you..." Edward forced the words out through his clenched teeth, "... but try to see things from our perspective"

This was difficult. Not even Quil understood, and they were effectively in the same boat with Renesmee and Claire. But the problem was that after eight years Claire looked like an eight year old and Quil was still secure in his role of big brother. For Jacob it was different... so different. He had loved Renesmee and protected her as a child. But whereas Quil had set himself a rough goal of Claire's high school graduation, Renesmee's acceleration had totally decimated any sort of time-frame Jacob had calculated with regards to the shift from protector and big brother to... more.

Edward had been right when he'd said once that Jacob was in no hurry to have Renesmee grow up and be... more. He was just happy to have her at all. But at the time, when she was only a year old, he hadn't realized how her growth spurt would trigger certain feelings sooner than was comfortable for her parents. One of whom was a mind-reader. Great.

Quil was no help when it came to Renesmee.

"If it was me?" he'd mused.

"If it was you" Jacob had encouraged the hypothetical.

Quil understood imprinting all too well, having been one of the first. He understood his role as Claire's big brother perfectly and took pride and certain amount of glee in it. But he also understood Jacob's dilemma. He could feel it. They all could. His pack. They all sympathized, but occasionally he recognized a twinge of... distaste?

Quil gave a small shiver. "I don't know" he said finally.

Jacob huffed.

"Maybe you should do as Bella and Edward ask?" Quil offered instead. It was better than 'I don't know', at least.

"Keep your distance from her" Edward had said, not aggressively, but Jasper and Emmett had stood behind him and that spoke volumes. "For now" he amended when Jacob's face fell.

Jacob thought back to that conversation of two months ago.

"She still comes to see you" Quil couldn't read his mind right now, being in human form, but Jacob guessed it was all over his face.

"And I still patrol their house" Jacob amended.

They knew he did. That didn't mean they liked it... but Edward at least had some idea of the pull Renesmee had for him, and allowed it... begrudgingly.

But Renesmee sneaking out to come and see Jacob in the middle of the night? That, he was sure, Edward wouldn't be able to reason with Jake about...

"You shouldn't be here" he murmured. "You're parents..." he started, sensing her presence leaning against the door frame of his garage.

"Since when did you listen to my parents?"

She smirked and an image flitted into Jacob's mind. Her lips on his, pulling him toward her, down into the softness of her...

"Ness..." he murmured, shaking his head.

She just kept on smiling. "Impure thoughts?" she murmured, without looking up.

"Not exactly _my_ thoughts" he grumbled back, feeling his temperature rise as the Renesmee in his mind slowly tugged...

"A technicailty" she whispered.

"Ness!" he growled, and his mind emptied. He was left with his own thoughts, and the bitter after-taste of longing.

She turned so that her back pressed against the wall, her feet out in front of her, she stared down at them, not wanting to meet his gaze. She knew that Jacob's patience with her was not infinite.

"Sorry" she mumbled.

He didn't say anything. It wasn't her this time, but the images lingered as his own sense of clarity washed over his thoughts. He knew the intricacies of Renesmee's gift as well as any of the Cullen's. She had grown up sharing it with them, her own way of communicating, expressing thoughts when words were insufficient. Memories made up the bulk of her images; acting as points of reference. You could see her dreams if you lay your head close enough to hers while she slept, they were vivid as she lived them in the moment, like watching a movie. Her memories and dreams appeared in your mind, clear and focused, high definition. It was very rare that she would share a constructed thought, a piece of her imagination. That seemed more private somehow, and she didn't share such thoughts so easily, if ever. Edward had been partly right, once. Where her mother could shield her mind from intrusion, Renesmee would happily surrender hers... but it was always under her control. The flip-side of her father's gift, Renesmee could plant her own images into a person's mind, when she did so she was baring her soul to them... but she was her mother's daughter in many ways. She could be gate-keeper to her powers.

But on the rare occasion she did; when she was anxious for someones safety and the worst case scenario's she'd dreamed up ran through your mind... well, you could separate those from the memories and dreams because they were hazy. Not based in any reality but her own imagination, there was a sort of buttery glow around them...like they appeared in sepia tones. Instead of a 'then' and 'now', it was more of a distinction between the 'real' and her 'imagined'.

Jacob knew that Renesmee rarely shared such thoughts with her family. He realized this when she was two years old, but looked closer to six. The night before her first day of primary school, as Jacob watched her drawing on the kitchen counter, some abstract crayon masterpiece that looked more like a work of Picasso than a child's refrigerator decoration, an image had flashed in his mind of Nessie at school, sitting all alone, watching as the other children gave her a wide berth on the playground... the image had cut him right down the middle. Her first day of school was tomorrow, and this image had been blurry (as though he was seeing it through tear-clouded eyes), the whole scene tinged with anxiety and fear.

His first instinct then had been to gather her up into his arms and tell her not to worry, soothe her by promising his presence... but then he'd stopped himself from saying the words. Some things he could not promise. Instead he had offered her reassurances, spoken in his strong voice, full of conviction that every child would be lining up to play with her, and if anyone gave her a hard time, they'd have him to answer to. That made her smile... and he felt his body ease with her relief.

As he'd left the white house that day, Edward walked him to the door and stopped short when Renesmee's anxious thought flitted through Jacob's mind again.

"I didn't realize" Edward whispered.

"First day jitters, no big deal" Jacob had reassured, though he wasn't entirely convinced himself, and thinking of the image again gave him the strong impulse to dart back into the house and gather her up in his arms once again.

"Of course she'll fit in fine" Edward mused. He looked up into Jacob's eyes, "she didn't tell any of us she was so nervous" he murmured. "Or show us" he added after a beat.

Jacob nodded, understanding suddenly. She had confided in him... only him.

"So it would seem" Edward muttered. He never had completely 'warmed' to his future son-in-law.

"I didn't realize she had..." Edward broke off for a moment, hesitating, and then shaking his head slightly before continuing "... lingered on such anxieties".

Jacob nodded for a moment, pretending to understand while his mind raced to make sense of Edward's heavy words.

As usual, Edward dumbed it down for him. "She dreams, as we've had the pleasure of seeing..." he smiled momentarily, but was then dragged back to the present situation, "... I didn't realize her waking imagination could construct such nightmares" he whispered.

In that instant Jacob realized that in two years Renesmee's accelerated emotional intellect had very carefully kept images of her own creation; colored by anxiety, fear, desperation; from her family, so as not to hurt them. But she had confided in Jacob. She had shown him in that moment the thing she feared more than anything in the world. She had trusted him to give her reassurance, not out-right. worry.

At the time, five years ago, standing in the doorway of the Cullen household with her father, Jacob let himself smile a small triumphant grin as he realized there were certain things Nessie would all too willingly trust him with, above all others...

But as she grew, matured, he had on many more occasions cursed her willingness to show him her imagination.

This time being one of them.

The image of Renesmee in his mind, her back arched willingly under his hands...

He had to shake his head again.

Gone were the days when her imagination was distinctly childlike... showing him sepia-blurred images of herself standing before a classroom of her peers, afraid of their mocking laughs as she read a story aloud. Or the anticipatory images of her running alongside Zafrina in a green jungle she desperately wanted to visit.

As she matured, physically in the span of seven years to more closely resemble an eighteen year old, her mind matured also... and with it, those innocent imaginings became distinctly more adult.

"Isn't it time you were getting back home, kiddo?" he placed emphasis on the last word, as much to warn her that she had crossed a line he didn't appreciate, as to remind himself that she was technically still a child (if not physically so).

She let out a low breath and lightly ground her teeth together.

He thought she was getting ready to say something venomous. Or to spite him by amping up the adult content of her shared thoughts... instead she unlocked her jaw and let out a calm breath.

"Yes, I suppose so" she said evenly. Accepting.

He turned away from the car he was pretending to fix to look at her. She was standing straight now, still at the entrance to the garage, looking at him intently. Her chocolate eyes locked onto his...

"Will you be coming over tomorrow?" she asked, still with an odd calm to her lilting voice.

He received a flash image of her and him together, alone. So Edward and Bella still hadn't been more articulate in their reason for her not being allowed to be alone with Jacob. He guessed that going into great detail about imprinting and the difficulties her accelerated age posed for him was to point out the elephant in the room... then again, maybe Edward and Bells were worried that once Renesmee understood their worries, she would clarify them by revealing her own altered feelings about her once big-brother best-friend, Jacob.

"Hunting?" he asked.

"No" she replied quickly.

"I don't think..." he would circle the cottage as he did every night. He couldn't physically stand to be separated from her for more than twenty-four hours, the Cullens knew this. So did she. Every night for the last three months he would transform and make his rounds of the Cullen property, needing to breathe in her scent... not necessarily to see her, but to be near her, just near... it was never enough, but it was what he needed.

Lately she had taken to waiting for him while he circled. Asking him to shift back to human form. In the dark, Renesmee clad in some flimsy white night-dress, clearly enjoying breathing in his distinctly 'Jacob' scent of wood and smoke... that was when her imaginings sometimes involuntarily entered his mind. Her guard was down when she was tired, and sometimes she would happily let her shield slip to show him her happy constructs...

Lately, he had had to draw a few lines in the sand. He, and Edward, who had uncomfortably realized the complications between Jacob and Renesmee. Jacob had had to make it clear that he was not yet courting her... they could hunt together, hang out with her family present and watchful... he wouldn't feel comfortable spending tomorrow with the Cullen's though. Not when Renesmee's thoughts were so... vivid and single-minded of late.

"Fine"

Her cold voice cut through his thoughts and he blinked.

She was angry. She had a small crease between her eyes, her full lips were plumped and pouted. Her cheeks flaming with anger.

"Ness..."

"Forget about it, Jacob"

"Don't go away angry" he pleaded.

"I'm not angry..." she whispered

"Oh, c'mon Ness..." he began

"...I'm just frustrated" she finished.

Now it was his turn to blush.

"Err..." he started

She rolled her eyes "not _that _kind of frustrated", she crossed her arms over her chest, "why don't you talk to me anymore?" she asked clearly, a little loudly even.

"Wh-what?" he stammered, allowing the odd feuding feelings of relief and disappointment to cloud his mind at hearing her clarification. So she wasn't frustrated in that way? _Lucky her_, he thought bitterly to himself – _why should both of us suffer?_ was his second thought.

"I thought..." she started, and suddenly her sing-song voice faltered. Her blush increased as she tried to correct herself. "...About you and I..." she began again, cautiously, "...I always thought we were going..."

"Ness" his powerful Alpha voice came back to him, and she looked almost relieved to not have to finish the thought.

"Ness" he repeated, deliberately softening her name in his mouth. "You are eight years old"

Her blush, if it was at all possible, increased. It was hard crimson now, and covered her entire face.

"I. Am. Not. A. Child" she spat the words out.

"Yes, you are" he replied calmly. This was a topic he had thought about long and hard. He knew how his side of the debate would go, and he could guess her's.

"I am _not _eight years old"

"Well, technically..." Jacob began, cautiously.

In one fluid movement she twirled around, reaching across his work bench and picking up a crow-bar. One-handed she curled the object into a tight ball and piffed it at his head. He ducked, easily, but the ball embedded into the wooden wall.

"_Very_ mature" he murmured, and then instantly cursed himself. Not the best remark to make at this moment...

Before he could apologize she was already a blur walking off into the night.

He thought for a moment that it would be best to let her go, cool off. Or be mad at him. Anything to avoid this conversation. But a much stronger forced pulled him out the door after her. She was acting angry, but he knew that really she was hurt...

He had strode after her and was a good fifty meters outside the door and into the cold dark night when he heard her low huff come from behind him.

She hadn't bounded into the night, she had side-stepped and waited outside the door, waiting to watch if he would chase after her?

"You are full of contradictions" she whispered, her face lifted to search his own.

He sighed, and stood awkwardly before her, letting the distance between them remain.

"Just tell me" she whispered low, and he thought he heard a catch in her voice. Was she about to cry?

"What?" he asked quickly.

"Tell me I'm not the one anymore"

"What!?" he had been slowly moving toward her when he'd realized her impending tears. Now, in two quick steps her head was tucked safely under his chin, her arms had come around his waist and her face was flat against his massive chest.

After a moment or two like this, though it felt longer to Jacob, since time in her presence seemed to bend differently... she pulled away to look up into his face.

Her arms were still securely, strongly, around his waist. He reluctantly but forcefully untangled them and took the smallest of steps back. This movement seemed to trigger a fresh bout of tears, but Renesmee composed herself so she could speak.

"Tell me"

"What are you talking about?" he didn't want to give anything away that would get him into trouble with the Cullens. Edward and Bella especially.

"I'm not your imprint anymore" the words were barely a whisper, but for their potency to Jacob, they were all but screamed at the top of her lungs.

He opened his mouth to talk, if he could remember how to form coherant sentences, but Renesmee beat him to it. Words tumbled from her mouth so quickly he couldn't even catch the general gist of her thought pattern.

She sighed and looked into his confused face. She didn't need to anymore, as she matured so did her powers, but she reached out and up, cupping Jacob's face in her hands. She hadn't needed to touch anyone since she was two years old to let them see her thoughts. But now she did, so that the power of them was not lost amidst the inadequacy of her failed words...

Images flashed in his mind. Many of them were memories, only from seven years ago, but Renesmee had been a baby then, physically at least... how could she remember these scenes with such clarity and focus?

Many images were of him reluctantly passing a young Renesmee back into her parents or Roslaie's arms, the face he pulled as she was lifted from his hands was that of physical pain.

Facing the Volturi, he had growled when all eyes were on her. Calculating, determined, blood-thirsty eyes...

All of the disdainful looks he had ever flashed at Nahuel, even Embry when they looked at Renesmee. Appraising her for entirely different reasons.

It seemed that a hundred indefinable little moments flashed in his mind. Her own personal treasure trove of proof that he loved her, would love her more... glances he hadn't realized she'd noticed, smiles, touches that had sent a physical jolt through his body... just the sense she got when they were together. Not necessarily something either of them was wholly aware of, but when either noticed Jasper's reaction...

With a great deal of strength he reached up and pulled her hands away from his face. The images ceased. The last glimpses he'd had was her collected memories of overheard conversations regarding imprinting. Bits and pieces gathered from a number of sources. Leah, Seth, Sam, Embry, Quil, Emily, Kim, Jared...

"Then you know that it doesn't just stop" he whispered

She gave a small nod. "Not for them" she replied

Images flashed in his mind, from hers. A memory she had of Kim and Jared, sitting side by side at a camp-fire he'd bought her to a coupe of years ago, Jared had kept sneaking side-ways glances at Kim, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth with each glimpse. Another image, this time of Sam coming to wrap his arms around Emily as he returned home from a hunt with Jacob and Renesmee. Each memory was distinctly tainted with the whiff of female human smell, permeating from Kim and Emily. It was like the memories came with smell-o-vision.

"Oh" Jacob breathed when the images stopped flashing and the smell receded.

"Yes...'Oh'" Renesmee repeated glumly.

"Oh!" Jacob repeated. Realization flooded his mind the same way her images had.

He caught her chin with his fingers, lifting it so her eyes met his.

"You think I only wanted that half of you?" he asked softly. The human half. She thought his imprint wasn't as strong as the others in his pack because she was half of what their imprinteds were. Human.

"Maybe it's different for you..." she choked a little, "...for us"

He was about to say more, but she interrupted again.

"Maybe it fades as I get older, as I mature..."

He shook his head lightly, but she wasn't paying attention.

"... I wanted to keep you. So I kept showing you what I wanted..." he felt her blush as it hit his hand that was cupping her chin, "...and what I thought you would want..."

All those enticements. She had no idea how much he wanted... because she thought he was pulling away from her, for all the wrong reasons.

"Renesmee"

That shut her up. He never used her full name. Not unless he was angry with her. She had never heard him say it with such... affection. Like the word was a caramel in his mouth.

"How can I make you understand?" he whispered.

She opened her mouth, about to let more words spill out... but his mouth stopped hers. He'd let his hand fall from her chin, and wrap around her waist, steadying her. One strong, splayed hand pressed against her lower back. The kiss was gentle at first, his lips were so warm and soft. She felt his lips curve into a smile while still kissing her. What was so funny...? She hadn't realized. But the second his mouth closed onto hers she had started showing him. Random bits and pieces. A kaleidoscope of images and feelings. Fragments of her dreams; butterflies and bursts of light through forest trees, the feeling of falling and feeling your stomach remain somewhere above your head as you fell, sand between fingers and the small glow of relief that came with coming home... the image changed from the small stone cottage to something else... Jacob's face. Coming home. And then she was beyond thinking as his tongue sought hers and his lips left hers momentarily. They needed to breathe, but he couldn't let go... his lips brushed down her neck, kissing the throb of her pulse, sucking in air while sweeping across her skin. And then they were back. Searching, and that flash of Jacob's face and glow of coming home crashed in their minds again as their tongues met and lips moved...

With a strength he didn't know he had, he let his hand fall from her back, and slowly pulled away from her still eager lips.

"It doesn't fade..." he whispered breathlessly, swiping a loose curl from her still closed eyes.

She opened her eyes then, and it took all his will-power as he looked into her chocolate brown eyes to not bend back down and let his lips search for hers again...

A small smile tugged at her mouth. She let out one shaky breath.

"And I am not a child..." she whispered, her voice not in the least bit unsteady.

Before he could speak she was in his arms. Her legs wrapped around his torso, his arms reflexively steadying her by holding onto her hips as her lips crashed into his...

_**Lifehouse – 'Broken' **_

_**The Broken clock is a comfort**_

_**It helps me sleep tonight**_

_**Maybe it can stop tomorrow**_

_**From stealing all my time**_

_**And I am here still waiting**_

_**Though I still have my doubts**_

_**I am damaged at best**_

_**Like you've already figured out**_

_**I'm falling apart**_

_**I'm barely breathing**_

_**With a broken heart**_

_**That's still beating**_

_**In the pain**_

_**There is healing**_

_**In your name**_

_**I find meaning**_

_**So I'm holding on (I'm holdin on)(I'm holdin on)**_

_**I'm barely holding on to you**_

_**The broken locks were a warning**_

_**You got inside my head**_

_**I tried my best to be guarded**_

_**I'm an open book instead**_

_**And I still see your reflection**_

_**Inside of my eyes**_

_**That are looking for purpose**_

_**They're still looking for life**_

_**I'm falling apart**_

_**I'm barely breathing**_

_**With a broken heart**_

_**That's still beating**_

_**In the pain (In the pain)**_

_**Is there healing**_

_**In your name**_

_**I find meaning**_

_**So I'm holding on (I'm still holdin on)(I'm holdin on)**_

_**(I'm still holdin on) (I'm holdin on)**_

_**I'm barely holding on to you**_

_**I'm hanging on another day**_

_**Just to see what, you will throw my way**_

_**And I'm hanging on, to the words you say**_

_**You said that I will, will be okay**_

_**The broken light on the freeway**_

_**Left me here alone**_

_**I may have lost my way now**_

_**But I haven't forgotten my way home**_

_**I'm falling apart**_

_**I'm barely breathing**_

_**With a broken heart**_

_**That's still beating**_

_**In the pain (In the pain)**_

_**There is healing**_

_**In your name (In your name)**_

_**I find meaning**_

_**So I'm holding on (I'm still holdin')(I'm holdin' on)(I'm still holdin') (I'm holdin' on) (I'm still holdin')**_

_**Barely holding on to you (I'm still holdin on)**_

_**Barely holdin on to you**_


	2. Chapter 2

"I am going to talk to your father today"

Renesmee gave a small nod and then ducked her head down, brushing her soft lips across his neck...

Jacob let out a low sigh and pressed his hand a little bit harder against her back.

"...Today..." he murmured, trying to remember his train of thought as her lips moved their way up his neck and slowly began to nibble his left ear-lobe.

"Today?" she murmured as her lips worked their way across his cheek, planting small kisses along his jaw line.

She stopped abruptly her face hovering just above his, her lips inches away from his own...

"Today" he croaked, opening his eyes to see why she'd stopped.

She gave a quick shake of her head and lay her hands flat on his chest to push herself up to a sitting position.

Jacob gave a low moan as the weight he'd been enjoying was lifted off his body. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to focus on something, anything that wasn't Renesmee as he pulled himself to a sitting position next to her. Hunching his back slightly, the discomfort in his jeans pulled his focus to inanimate objects. Desk. Chair. Table... he shifted uncomfortably once more and felt the blood slowly pool back into his head.

"I have to" he murmured, still not trusting himself to look sideways at her and risk losing the self-control thinking of furniture had given him.

She gave another small shake of her head. "Not yet, Jake..." she began.

He gave a small sigh and turned to see her staring intently at him, her brown eyes blazing, a small line of worry between them...

"Ness..." he began.

An image of Edward's snarling face, white teeth bared ferociously flashed in his mind and he gave a small nod. "I expect it will be something along those lines..." he murmured.

"Exactly!" Renesmee exclaimed, turning her body slightly more toward him.

They were sitting on his bed and it squeaked under their respective weight. They had been enjoying having the house to themselves since Billy had gone fishing with Charlie and Paul had taken Rachel to see a movie. Their usual rendezvous spot was in the woods. Jacob didn't so much mind getting a sopping wet, grass-stained back as he became a blanket for Renesmee to stretch herself out on... but he had been enjoying the change of pace that four walls, a roof and warm bed had bought to their liaisons. He mentally scolded himself for having ever mentioned talking to her family about the change to their relationship while he'd been mid-kiss. Was he a special kind of stupid?

"Ness, they are going to start getting suspicious..." he began, slowly. "I haven't been around to your place for a week now. It's not going to take a mind-reader to guess the reason I haven't needed to come around and see you..."

"But, Jake..." she interjected.

He held a hand up and continued. "It's only a matter of time before I have to go around to the Cullen's to keep up appearances and the second your father gets a peek inside my head..."

"So don't think about it!" she said, excited at her revelation.

Jacob rolled his eyes. Easy for her to say. Growing up with a mind-reader for a father, Renesmee had pretty quickly found and perfected the loop-holes to his abilities. The gate-keeping her own abilities aloud, partly due to Bella's own shield gift, weren't a perfect defense. During moments of heightened emotion her mind slipped and tended to get away from her... anyone around her could be subject to the images her mind let escape when she wasn't concentrating or was taken unawares. But Renesmee found that a good antidote to Edward's probing abilities was to imagine physical shields in her mind... brick walls, vaults... it reminded Jacob of that movie 'Village of the Damned' where the characters figure out that to stop some psychopathic alien kids from reading their minds and killing them, they have to imagine brick walls. He gave a small shudder as he considered the similarities between Edward and the white-haired, yellow-eyed mind-killing children in that film and his future father in law.

"Won't do any good, Ness..." he began.

A smile lit her face as she thought through her new plan. "Yes it will! Whenever you're near my dad just think about..."

He stopped her by reaching out and cupping her face in his hands and looking very seriously into her eyes.

"...anything else..." she finished quietly.

Jacob gave a small half-smile, "not possible" he whispered, kissing her quickly on the mouth.

When he pulled away her eyes were closed but she was smiling too.

"They won't like this" she murmured after a moment.

"No they won't" he agreed.

"What if they don't let me see you...?" she began

"We'll figure it out" he answered quickly. Truth be told he hadn't really considered any possibilities other than Edward and Bella seeing reason. It was hard, but not impossible before when they'd told him to keep his distance. But now that he'd... he considered for a moment... now that he'd _tasted _her, he knew it would be impossible to make it through even a day without touching Renesmee. Whether it was having her balanced on top of him, kissing her, or even just stroking her hand... he needed that sense of touch now, constantly.

He felt like more. Of course he did. And judging from Renesmee's shared thoughts, she wanted more too... but both of them knew that anything beyond kissing and groping before their families knew about the change in their relationship would end badly.

And neither of their families knew anything... yet.

Jacob had transformed all of three times in the last week. His pack thought it was incredibly strange that he hadn't been in wolf form for more than five hours all week, but they didn't question him. It had taken all his mental energy to not think of Renesmee while he'd been in wolf form. It was hard, but he'd done it. It was hard because when he turned into an animal, certain animal instincts became incredibly strong...

"Maybe you should let me talk to them first..." Renesmee began, reaching up and stroking one of the hands that still cupped her face.

Jacob shook his head. "No, it's my responsibility..."

Renesmee cocked an eyebrow and stopped stroking. "We're in this together, Jacob" she spoke quietly but forcefully, "so maybe we should speak to them _together_?"

He shook his head again, and felt her eyes change from mild apprehension to slight anger.

"This one's on me, Ness. I broke a promise to your folks..."

She opened her mouth to protest, but he just kept on talking.

"...I have to make amends for that and take whatever punishment..."

"Jake!"

He gave another half-smile, "I'm not really expecting to come out of this one unscathed, Ness"

"If he so much as touches a hair on your..." she began.

"I am a little more concerned about your mother, actually"

And he was. Whereas Edward would at least _have _to listen to Jacob's side of the story by reading his mind, Bella wouldn't wait for such formalities and might well go straight for the jugular before getting both sides to the story.

Seeing the sudden panic in her eyes, Jacob quickly forced a smirk across his lips. "Well, your mother... and your uncles, and your aunts..." he let out a low laugh, "heck, I think even Carlisle might break his 'do no harm' rule and get a punch in"

Renesmee reached up and pulled his hands away from her face. "Not funny" she said evenly, lowering her eyes.

He gave a small nod. "No, not funny" he agreed. "But..." he reached out a hand, placing it on her thigh, the action drew her eyes back to his face "I am twenty-five years old..." he murmured, "...I shouldn't have to sneak around behind my families back just to get some make-out time with my girlfriend"

Her hand covered his and a small smile returned to her lips. "Girlfriend?" she asked softly.

He mirrored her smile.

"You like that?" he asked, feeling a burst of glowing warmth spread through his chest.

She gave a small shrug and feigned nonchalance. "Whatever" she mumbled. "So we're 'going steady' then?" she added, with another small shrug.

He reached out and poked her lightly in the ribs, she tried hard to not let too big a smile break across her face.

"Yeah, we are 'going steady'..." he chuckled.

"I'm your girlfriend?" she queried, raising a mischievous eyebrow.

He nodded once.

She pulled her legs up onto the bed, sliding them under her as she placed two strong hands on his shoulders and pushed him back onto the bed, so he was lying down again. Then she crawled to the other side of him, laying her head on his chest and throwing one leg over his torso as one big arm came to wrap around her shoulders. She sighed with contentment.

"It doesn't quite fit though..." he murmured, enjoying the weight of her again. "Girlfriend is just so..."

"Ordinary?" she offered.

He nodded, though she couldn't see it. "You're more than that" he said quietly.

He reached down, groping for her left hand. When he found it he brought it up to rest flat on his chest, and he began to absently twirl the wooden ring that was on her middle finger. He made her a new one with each growth spurt. The one she wore now had fit her for one whole year now.

"You're my..."

"Imprint?" she offered again.

"Yes. And more..." he murmured.

Not fiancee, not yet. Partner? Betrothed? Promised?

"I'm yours" she said simply, and that warm glow came back to him.

He brought her hand to his lips and kissed the ring.

"And you're mine" she whispered after a moment. He answered her by pulling her up to his lips for another heated make-out session before Billy and Charlie returned...


	3. Chapter 3

As cold hands squeezed around his neck Jacob really couldn't find any justification for himself. As the hands tightened and his mind began to slacken he couldn't help but think he deserved this.

A low growl somewhere to their left told him that someone else thought otherwise.

And then the pressure was gone, light was still searing behind his eyes as consciousness returned, but the pressure around his neck was gone and he coughed with a lungful of air.

Air. Breath. Life. He spluttered as the oxygen re-entered his brain and suddenly became aware that there were more growls now.

It took him another minute to realize that one of the low rumblings was infact coming from within him.

So that was why the hands had left his throat. He had transformed mid-choke.

_You okay?_

He blinked and shook his large head. Voices. His?

_Jake?_

Leah. Right. He was in wolf form.

_Fine_ he replied.

He blinked again and opened his eyes; drinking in the scene before him.

Edward standing awkwardly; not quite standing, but about to move into a crouch if it weren't for Jasper and Emmett holding him back by pulling both his arms awkwardly behind his back. His teeth bared, a low constant hiss issuing from behind those teeth...

Rosalie looking smug as she peered out of the second-storey window. Alice shaking her head from side to side as she watched the scene from the doorway... no doubt cursing Jacob for his blind-spots.

Jacob turned his big head and saw Leah standing to his left. Her back a straight line as she lowered close to the ground, prepared to jump into an attack, her lips were bared...

_Where did you come from?_ he asked so casually that he felt Leah's shock at his words.

_Followed you_

_Why?_

Her eyes flickered to him momentarily and then returned to the three vampires before them.

_You've been acting weird all week._

_So you've been keeping tabs on me?_

He instantly wondered if she had been following him... and if so, had she seen him and Renesmee...

_So that's what this is about? _her voice broke in

_I didn't even get a word in..._ Jacob mused, before Edward had come barrelling out of the house, teeth bared.

_Big surprise. _Leah scoffed.

Jacob shook his head slightly once again, careful as he sifted through his thoughts. He needed to remember what he had been thinking as he approached the big house... but what he had been thinking had brought Edward sprinting out of the house and wrapping his steel grip around Jacob's throat.

Obviously he hadn't been as careful with his thoughts as he'd thought...

_Renesmee_

Just thinking her name had Edward's low hiss rising an octave.

_Sorry _Jacob muttered sheepishly.

"You will be, mutt" Edward's voice suddenly snapped.

Emmett raised an eyebrow and Jasper's mouth became a thin grimace. Clearly he wasn't enjoying the emotional atmosphere.

But why were Jasper and Emmett holding Edward back? They must know what had triggered this reaction from their brother... he knew that the entire Cullen family had been helping Edward and Bella to enforce their new rules regarding him and Renesmee. He also knew that Emmett especially felt the same way about Jacob as his mate, Rosalie did. So why weren't they letting Edward rip him to shreds?

Edward clearly wasn't appreciating Jacob's rationalizing, and started struggling harder against his brother's strength, even snapping at Emmett with his menacing teeth before Emmett yanked hard on the arm he was holding.

_Bella? _Jacob mused

_I don't smell her_ Leah replied to his thought

No doubt Edward and Bella had discussed their feelings concerning Jacob and Renesmee with the entire family. Jacob knew that if both of them had asked the family to stop any hank-panky...

Edward let out a new bout of low growls

...at whatever cost, then Emmett and Jasper wouldn't have interfered with Edward's punishment of Jacob. But what if Bella's views on the whole thing differed slightly?

They had presented a united front a few months ago when they had laid down the new law prohibiting Renesmee and Jacob to spend any time alone. But if their views didn't exactly match it's not as though they would have let Jacob know that and think that there was any wiggle room with the new law.

What if Bella was a little more forgiving of Jacob's imprint? In that case, the family wouldn't let Edward deliver such swift justice without first speaking with Bella.

And to think that Jacob had been fearing his best friends reprimand even more than Edward's... now he was thanking his lucky stars for all those awkward conversations he and Bella had once had regarding imprinting.

"You really think you'll get her blessing?" Edward's voice was low, almost mocking, but still with a definite edge.

He couldn't do this one-sided anymore.

_I wouldn't..._ Leah began

_I came here to talk _

_You're funeral_

"Exactly" Edward added to Leah's thought

She let out a low growl. Whether annoyed at the interruption into her thoughts or the threat to her Alpha, Jacob couldn't be sure.

_I'll be right here_ she added, with a snap of her large jaw; _Quil and Embry are in the woods, waiting for my signal_

He hadn't heard them. Either they were being deliberately empty-headed so that Edward wouldn't know they were ready to ambush, or they were in human form waiting for Leah's howl. Either way, knowing they were close by was a comfort to Jacob.

Edward let out another growl and that comfort slowly receded.

_Wish me luck_ he murmured as he closed his eyes and focused on transforming.

His body ripped back into human form and he remained crouched as he reached around for the black bag strung to his ankle, slipping into his black jeans in one fluid movement and rising to stand his full intimidating height.

None of the Cullens looked particularly taken aback by the transformation. They had seen it all before.

Jacob opened his mouth, about to speak, but Jasper beat him to it.

"Wait" he spat out, clearly some of Edward's hostility was rubbing off on him. That couldn't be a good thing for Jacob.

"Carlisle and Esme are on their way" Jasper added, looking into Jacob's face.

Carlisle, Jacob thought. Having the Buddhist vampire leader here could only help matters. He let out a calm breath and felt that his throat didn't hurt anymore after Edward's strangle-hold.

"Let's go inside, brother" Emmett spoke calmly to Edward, though he still had a strong hold on one arm.

Emmett lifted his head briefly and nodded at Jacob; "talk this through", he added.

It was strange hearing the brutish Emmett opt for negotiations rather than brawling. This whole situation was topsy-turvy, Jacob thought.

At Emmett's suggestion Leah let out a very soft howl. Quil and Embry would be transforming then, and getting filled in on the details. Jacob wondered for only a minute what Quil would think of the new developments with Ness.

Edward was about to say something, but instead his head turned slightly and then Jacob noticed the pixie-like Alice walking down the porch steps toward them.

She came to Jasper's side, but looked into Edward's face.

He gave a small nod and his coiled stance slackened somewhat, and with it Jasper and Emmett's grip on him. Jasper had obviously recognized a new sense of calm in him, and let one of his hands drop so that he was holding onto Edward one-handed.

"Bella is on hew way" Alice said, turning slowly to look at Jacob. "She'll be here in ten minutes"


	4. Chapter 4

High school is like an all-you-_can't_-eat-buffet.

Renesmee smiled to herself. Jacob's humor was rubbing off on her.

The teacher at the front of the room continued to scratch frantically at the chalkboard while the students drifted off into conversation, boredom and sleep.

"The Stanford prison experiment elicited fascinating results..." Mr Mueller droned as he continued to sketch the prison cell.

This stuff was actually fascinating... or it would be, if Jasper hadn't taught it to her years ago, when she was four but looked six years old with the an even more accelerated learning rate.

Somebody sneezed behind her and she noted their momentary heart-stop and remembered Carlisle telling her once that humans say "God bless you" as a sort of prayer that the heart starts beating again.

She could hear it now. The steady boom, boom, boom of that heart... if she concentrated especially hard she could probably count how many students were in the class across the hall, just by listening to their heartbeats.

Concentrating on such things didn't drive her mad or give her an insatiable hunger. It was complicated. She had grown up 'vegeterian'... well, apparently she had been fed human blood as a newborn baby, but that didn't count... she could remember the taste of human blood, but she didn't _need _it. Crave it? Sometimes, she supposed. But not enough to jeopardize her and her families lives. She craved blood, certainly. Animal blood – elk, bear, lion, deer... she preferred that to human food, which she could also eat but rarely enjoyed. If she preferred animal blood to human food, then she supposed she would prefer human blood to animal blood...

Complicated.

"With which other psychological experiment was Zimbardo's compatible?" Mueller asked, "Renesmee?"

"The Milgram experiment" she replied.

Mueller paused for a moment, and then realized that she had been correct and bobbed his head awkwardly.

"Err... yes" he murmured.

This was, technically, her first time round High School. She had been learning at a secondary education rate since the age of six, but hadn't attended an actual High School until last year.

Her schooling was also hard to explain.

For the first six years of her life she grew at an accelerated rate. She appeared two years older for every one year of life. And her mind grew even faster than that...

So while she looked to be around six years old, but was actually three years old, her family had sent her to primary school. Several, actually... all over the state. She would be enrolled at each school for half a year, and then under a new alias enroll for the second half at another school. All so that nobody grew suspicious of her physical changes.

Under these aliases she had been;

Vanessa Wolfe

Carlie Swan

Rosalie Emmett

Alice Jasper

Edwina Swan

Edwina Cullen

Isabella Esme

Carlie Rose

...and so on and so forth. In the end J. Jenks had given them a bulk discount.

It wasn't that she gained anything from attending these schools. Finger-painting when she would rather be reading Keats meant that school in those days was a chore. But Edward and Bella especially wanted her to have the experience. It wasn't just that they wanted her to grow up with some ounce of normalcy, but they wanted her to get used to them. Humans. To grow with them and understand them... to gain new layers in understanding why her family didn't eat them. And also to help her in mimicking them.

Now she was eight years old and looked to be sixteen, so she had been enrolled in Forks High School last year. Her first time around... but probably not her last, judging from the collection of graduation caps her aunts, uncles and father had collected over the years.

Only her mother had had to suffer through high school once, she was still refusing to go through it again.

Really she should have though. The Cullens should have moved on from Forks years ago... but had stayed. For Renesmee. Because her grandpa Charlie was in Forks. Because Jacob's pack was here... because the hospital staff had answered their own suspicions of Dr. Cullen and his wife by gossiping about their botox addiction. Because her aunts and uncles had broken off in their pairs and lived as married couples on and off for three years and her parents didn't mind having only each other for company and becoming recluses in their stone cottage.

Complicated.

But here _she_ was. Living out in the open. As the newest addition to Dr. Carlisle Cullen's extended adopted family. One year on and she was still 'the new girl' at Forks High.

"Ness" somebody whispered at her left.

A flyer was thrust into her hand, she looked down at it.

**_Forks High __Cheerleading__ try-outs!!_**

**This Tuesday**

**1pm - gym**

**_Come and get your cheer on!!_**

**Spartan Spirit – we've got ours, how about_ you_****? **

...And a picture of the head cheer-leader, Melanie Brown, with a big smile on her face and one leg high in the air.

'Get your cheer on'? Renesmee mused.

"You have got to be kidding me" she muttered under her breath.

"You trying out, Ness?"

She threw a quick glance at Mr. Mueller's back at the front of the room, and then turned around in her seat to see Justin Arrow grinning at her. His cinnamon brown hair was slicked down with too much gel and his dull gray eyes were looking at her mischievously.

"You'd look good in the outfit..." he added, with a quick wink.

She didn't understand this. Was it flirting? Genuine flattery? Insult? Teenage boys were very hard to decipher.

Justin was undoubtedly the most popular boy in school. He played football, had dated Melanie Brown and according to cafeteria gossip; 'gone all the way with her', before dumping her a couple of weeks after Renesmee arrived at Forks High.

"Yeah, Ness" she girl sitting next to him shot her a small smile, "you'd be great!" she added, blushing when Renesmee's eyes had landed on her. She didn't remember the girls name, but she had sandy-colored hair, kind blue eyes in a plump plain face and a sweet lilting voice. Renesmee was still getting used to people calling her by her real name in school... it was even harder to get used to them calling her 'Ness' and 'Nessie', her families nickname for her. And Jacob's.

She stole a small thought of him patroling around La Push in his russet wolf form and a small smile spread across her lips.

The blue-eyed girl's blush deepened, and Renesmee quickly caught her eye, letting her think the smile was for her.

"I'm not sure yet" Renesmee murmured.

"Renesmee?" Mr. Mueller's voice resonated around the room.

"The results were inconclusive" she said evenly, turning back around in her seat.

"Well... err...yes, yes they were" Mueller spluttered, and before he could say more the lunch bell rang and he was left staring at an empty classroom.

"I meant it"

Renesmee turned and saw that the unknown girl was trying hard to keep up with her as she strode toward the cafeteria. Her books were in her arms and Renesmee stole a quick peek down and made out the name 'Mary' on a sheet of paper inside.

"...about you trying out for the squad" Mary added, huffing slightly as her short legs tried to keep up with Renesmee's long strides.

She forced herself to slow down and walk at the same pace as her, and then flashed a brilliant smile down at her new friend. "Thanks...Mary"

The girl seemed to get a little jolt out of hearing Renesmee say her name, but returned her own brilliant smile.

When they reached the cafeteria doors Renesmee found a strong arm wrap itself comfortably around her shoulders and steer her toward a table at the back of the room, already populated by Justin Arrow's nearest and dearest associates.

It took all her will-power to not violently shrug off his unwelcome arm and fling him into the nearest wall, head first. Instead she concentrated on smiling and exchanging brief 'hello's' with everyone present.

How had this happened?

Her first day at Forks High and he'd attached himself to her like a leech. Encouraged by her parents for the sake of 'fitting in' she had gone to the parties he invited her to... but more often than not would leave early on the back of Jacob's motorbike after calling him to come bail her out.

She sat with Justin and his footballer and cheerleader friends during lunch. Nodded in all the right parts of their conversation, laughed along with their inane jokes... artfully dismissed Justin's advances by staying aloof to his flirting.

But how did she find herself here every lunchtime? Sitting with people whose names she could never remember.

She'd started playing a little game with herself. When the boys talked in low murmurs about the girls they'd taken out on the weekend, discussing in great detail what they had done in the backseats of their cars... she would place an image of one of their half-naked teammates in their head. She loved the momentary look of confusion and embarrassment as the boy looked into the faces of his friends to check that they hadn't noticed a change in him, and then listen as he made his conquest story just that little bit more absurd and unlikely.

She normally wouldn't use her gift on humans. But sometimes, she just couldn't resist.

And this game was often the only thing that got her from one lunch time to the next..

"Ness is going to try out for the squad!" Justin announced.

Was that pride in his voice? Renesmee shivered slightly.

"Oh, totally awesome! You'll definitely get picked!" a boy wearing a yellow and blue football jacket assured.

"Yeah, I mean... look at you!" another chimed in.

Renesmee caught him as Justin threw that boy a cold stare that had him fiddling with his juice box.

Her vampiric genes gave her certain advantages, certainly. She was a force to be reckoned with in P.E. Track, swimming, basketball, tennis, badminton... she could do it all. Never so that she drew attention to herself, but she had a physical finesse that was hard to hide. She wasn't especially tall, but she was slender. She had an envious hour-glass frame, long legs and lean arms. And she was strong. Not as strong as her full-vampire relatives, but super-human strength she definitely had. Her lean physique didn't hint at the fact that she could easily lift any one of these boys above her head one handed and throw them across the other side of the room without exerting any energy.

But it wasn't her athleticism that the boy had been hinting at when he'd suggested she was cheerleader material. She was beautiful. How could she not be? She was Edward Cullen and Bella Swan's daughter. She had their perfectly pale skin. Her mother's deep brown eyes. Her father's red wine colored hair that fell in loose curls down her back. Growing up with her mother, Rosalie, Alice and Esme hadn't made her own beauty especially noticeable to herself. And honestly, if any boys looked at her admiringly as she walked past them, she didn't notice. The only person whose admiration she wanted or noticed was Jacob's.

Jacob.

She smiled to herself.

She had study hall instead of Biology in last period today, so she thought she would give him a call to pick her up from school. They would go to the woods, he would lie down and she would stretch out on top of him, enjoying the look on his face as she rubbed up against him like a cat... and he would become impatient and search for her lips.

Her smile broadened, and then dimmed in another instant.

That could wait. What she and Jacob really needed to do was discuss a game-plan. Jacob wanted to speak to her family this weekend, and she wanted to know _exactly _what he was going to say. She also wanted to try and convince Jacob to let her be there while he broke the news to them... at the very least she could pull the brick-wall trick on her father before he refused to listen to reason. She would plant the image of a brick-wall in his mind, thereby forcing him to _listen _to what was being said, instead of just getting the cliff-notes from Jacob's mind.

She smiled again, wondering what he thought about when he thought of her...

She knew that the Jacob that preoccupied _her _mind was naked from the waist-up, having just morphed from wolf to man. She thought of that sheepish grin he flashed when he had to pull on a pair of pants from his black ankle-bag.

Renesmee was momentarily pulled from her thoughts as Justin said something to her.

"Do you want me to give you some pointers for your routine?" he was asking, with a leering grin.

"Let me guess, as many splits and high-kicks as you can fit into a two-minute song?" one of his friends jeered.

Justin punched him hard but playfully and snickered in response. "I know a thing or two about cheerleaders" was his reply, and he threw Renesmee another disturbing wink.

She pulled her eyes away from him to a table three rows away. Mary was sitting by herself, head bowed as she slowly unwrapped a brown paper bag.

In one fluid movement Renesmee had risen and was striding across the cafeteria floor towards Mary. She didn't notice as a bottle-blond in a Spartan cheer-leading outfit flashed her a momentary smile that was more like a snarl. Melanie Brown. Sitting at the same table as Mary, but keeping her distance.

"So I heard you were going to try out..." Melanie began.

Renesmee ignored her as she kept walking and went to sit down opposite Mary, who hadn't even had time to look up from her paper bag before Renesmee started talking.

"_You_ should try-out"

Mary's head snapped up, looked into Renesmee's chocolate eyes and then looked down the table at Melanie Brown's dumb-founded expression, and then back to Renesmee, whose eyes hadn't left hers.

"Wh, what?" Mary spluttered.

"Cheerleading" Renesmee replied coolly.

"Are you joking?" Mary asked, her voice rising into a squeak.

"No"

"You must be joking?"

Renesmee shook her head from side to side.

"No way!"

"Why not?"

Mary turned bright red and with one hand motioned to herself, "look at me!"

Renesmee's head stayed perfectly still but her eyes scanned Mary's body quickly, then came back to lock with her blue gaze once again. She raised one eyebrow.

"_I _am not cheerleader material!" Mary spluttered.

"Who says?"

"Everyone!"

"Who is 'everyone'?"

Mary turned her head as she scanned the cafeteria, a few pairs of eyes were looking at her and Renesmee quizzically.

"It wouldn't be a good idea" Mary murmured, her eyes dropping to the table.

She knew she shouldn't. But she couldn't help herself. She planted a sepia-toned image of Mary in a Spartan cheer-leading outfit in her head, and watched as a small smile crossed the girls lips.

She looked up at Renesmee, a little sheepishly. "I will..." she started, "...if you will?"

That took her by surprise. But the look of pure excitement that lit Mary's face was too much.

"Deal" she muttered.

Mary's face lit up. "Cool" she managed to blurt, Renesmee smiled, and then the bell signaling the end of lunch rang out.

"I have Chemistry now, what about you?" Mary asked as she rose.

The smile came back to Renesmee's lips. "Study hall" she replied, but an image of Jacob on his bike flashed in her mind.

"See you tomorrow then?" Mary asked a little shakily, raising an eyebrow.

Renesmee threw a quick glance back to the table she had walked away from. Justin was looked at her, his jaw hanging slightly agape. None of his friends seemed to notice her departure.

"Sounds good to me" Renesmee smiled, and walked with Mary outside, where they split up. Mary walking towards the labs, Renesmee to her car. A silver-Volvo. A hand me down to make her feel somewhat normal.

She whipped her phone out of her back pocket and dialed Jacob's number. Billy answered.

"Sorry honey, he's gone patrolling" Billy replied.

She thanked him and hung up.

Jacob was patrolling. He would either be with Leah, Quil, Embry or Seth.

She quickly dialed Seth's home number and waited five rings before he picked up.

"Oh, hey Ness" he answered cheerily.

"Hey Seth" she would have to be careful with her eagerness for seeking Jacob out. As far as the pack were concerned, Jacob was still obeying Bella and Edward's wishes by keeping his distance from her. If the pack knew more and one of them was to run into Edward... well, all hell would break loose.

"I'm looking for Jacob" she began

"Uhu" Seth replied.

"... I want to go hunting today" she said evenly.

"Well I haven't seen him"

"Do you know who he is on patrol with?"

"Patrol?"

"That's what he told Billy"

"He hasn't patrolled much this week"

Renesmee smiled to herself. He was trying very hard to keep things under wraps.

"Oh, he hasn't?" she feigned surprise.

"Nope..."

"Seth" she said his name as sweetly as possible, "...do you think you could...?"

"Be your own personal walkie-talkie?" he ended for her.

"Exactly" she smiled to herself.

"Hold on" he replied in a huff.

She waited a few minutes while Seth stripped down and shape-shifted into wolf form to send the message out. She hoped that none of the others in the pack would think anything of her looking for Jacob...

She heard the ripping noise. A sniff and shake of shaggy hair. And then a howl. A low growl.

What was that? She wondered.

The ripping sound came again and Seth's voice, panting slightly, gave her goosebumps...

"Ness" he said, his voice strained.

"What is it Seth?" she asked in a low voice.

"You'd better get home" Seth said, his voice shaking slightly, "...quickly".


	5. Chapter 5

Her foot was flat to the floor, the silver Volvo speeding along, trees whirring past to become nothing more than a green haze.

Renesmee's anger kept shifting with the blurring scenery; one moment directed at her family and their overprotectedness, changing in another instant to be directed at Jacob for breaking his promise in speaking to them _today._... and then her heart was tugged into a direction of worry; for Jacob, and for her family. Seth was worried for Jacob, which meant that the pack would be jumping to his rescue... but only if they had a reason to worry for his safety.

Her stomach lurched with the possibilities of casualties on either sides of her heart. She wondered if this was how Jasper always felt... pulled in every emotional direction at any one time. She couldn't begin to imagine how he got through the day...

Five more minutes and she would be pulling into the Cullens' long driveway.

Five more minutes to imagine the worst possible scenario.

She let the images that were warring in her mind project outward and hoped that her sickening worry was carrying to their minds...

Four more minutes.

"Don't kill each other, don't kill each other, don't kill each other"... she kept murmuring under her breath as she sped along.

The sickening feeling in her stomach grew as she got closer to home. Three minutes away now and she rolled one of the windows down, inhaling deeply.

She couldn't smell blood in the air. That was a relief, at least.

Her stomach clenched in anticipation and she sent out one last pleading image of both the wolf pack and her vampire family safe and unharmed; standing on either side of the large Cullen lounge room, amiably waiting for her arrival.

And then she closed her thoughts off, keeping them only for herself for the last two minutes until she reached home.

Of course she could see both sides.

She was, technically, eight years old. It wasn't her fault that she looked closer to seventeen and felt even older than that. But it was different for her family... it was hard for them to see her as anything other than a child. Because she had been, because she was _still_, such a special child to them.

She was, they reminded her frequently, a miracle. Made no less miraculous for the fact that she wasn't one of a kind.

They would do anything for her; had once been willing to die for her... would always feel the need to protect her.

Her parents had, once upon a time, accepted the fact that she and Jacob were inevitable. But that acceptance had come with the thinking that they still had six years before having to seriously contemplate that inevitability. And in the end, _eight_ years hadn't been all that long... especially for her immortal family who judged years, centuries and decades entirely differently from the normal perspective.

And once they accepted that she and Jacob were going to begin a life together... what then?

Eight years was already too long a time for her family to have stayed in Forks. The lengthy stay had meant that Alice, Jasper, Emmett and Rosalie had had to leave for extended periods of time over the course of that eight years, to not draw attention to the family... but what happened when she and Jacob's relationship became... official?

Jacob was an Alpha. His pack was in Forks. He could not leave them. The only way he could leave would be if he officially relinquished the pack to a new Alpha... to Leah, as his second in command, his Beta. Or her brother Seth, since Leah was the only female werewolf it couldn't be known if she could even be Alpha? Or would he pass it on to Embry – his half brother who, like Jacob, had chieftan blood in his veins.

But Jacob stepping down as Alpha was not even a possibility. He was either Alpha, or nothing. There was only stepping down, not demotion. If he wanted to pass the crown to someone else, that would mean he would no longer shape shift. And shape shifting was the only thing that was keeping Jacob Black, twenty-five years old, but with the appearance of an eighteen year old. Jacob being a werewolf was the only thing that meant he and Renesmee could be together... forever.

And as Alpha, Jacob could not leave his pack... could not leave La Push.

While Renesmee would have Jacob, she would in all likelihood stay behind in Forks while her family moved on to a new town, state, country... she couldn't have both.

Of course they would come and visit her, and she them. Every chance they got. But it would be different. They always lived as a family, a coven. When Emmett, Rosalie, Jasper and Alice had broken away to live for a while as married couples... it had caused a great deal of pain for all of the Cullens, dulled only by the knowledge that the absence was temporary, and the natural state of things would return. Equilibrium to the Cullens was them all being together... as a whole.

It would be even harder for them to be separated from Renesmee... hardest for her parents. They were connected by blood. Not in the same way as most vampire... but in the natural way of genetics, of family. An intangible link. Broken when she chose to stay with Jacob... and she _would _choose him.

Renesmee let out a shaky breath. Yes, she understood both sides. But understanding didn't make anything easier... exactly the opposite.

She turned into the hidden driveway and slammed on the brakes, the Volvo coming to an aggressive stop that sent small puffs of dirt flying up from under her tyres.

"Mama" she breathed as she looked into those eyes that mirrored her own.

Bella was standing casually infront of the car, dressed in blue jeans and a form-fitting grey cashmere sweater. Her chestnut hair hung lose around her shoulders... she looked stunning, even as gravel dust settled around her.

Renesmee let a quick huff of breath escape and then ran her fingers through her red hair, watching with narrowed eyes as her mother casually walked around to the passenger side door, opened it, and eased into the seat beside her daughter.

Bella didn't turn to meet her daughter's anxious gaze, but continued to stare straight ahead.

"I don't think we should keep them waiting..." Bella said, nodding toward the house.

What was this? Renesmee mused. What was she playing at?

Feeling the accusation Bella turned slowly and raised one perfectly sculpted eyebrow, her golden eyes curious, "Renesmee...?" she said her name softly.

Renesmee gave a small shake of her head and let out a heavy sigh as she pressed her foot on the acceleration, and the car made its way down the winding drive.

They didn't say anything, and Renesmee was careful to keep her mind empty.

As they approached the big white house, the surrounding woods had appeared empty, but smelt otherwise. Once the silver Volvo was parked, she and Bella were climbing out of the car to see three wolves make their presence known by stepping out into the clearing.

Renesmee threw them a weak smile.

The smaller brown one, Seth, gave a small head shake and backed slowly into his hiding spot... the other two following; Embry and Quil. Which meant that Leah was inside, with Jacob.

"Mama..." Renesmee began as they walked side by side toward the front porch.

Bella didn't slow down or turn to look at her.

"...I love him" Renesmee finished lamely, and she thought she saw her mother physically wince, but she didn't stop walking forward, acting as though she hadn't heard the words.

As they approahced the front door, Emmett's voice boomed; "about time!" as Bella pushed the door open.

Jacob and Leah were on the far side of the large room, in the corner, their backs to the wall. Jacob was wearing his black jeans and one of Emmett's white t-shirts that fit him almost perfectly. Leah, her hair hanging black and limp around her shoulders, was wearing a plain black cotton dress – the easiest thing for her to carry around and slip into after transforming.

On the other side of the room, sitting on the long white sofa were Carlisle and Esme, both looking equally distressed.

Standing behind the sofa was her father, flanked on either side by Jasper and Emmett. His head was bowed, so she couldn't read his expression... but his fists were clenched by his sides.

Alice was sitting on the staircase, her eyes had been trained on the door, she threw Renesmee the smallest of smiles but Renesmee had no chance to return it before her eyes were drawn to the staircase balcony, where Rosalie was standing with hands on her hips, looking down on the whole scene and wearing a look of mild disgust... the look she always wore when a wolf was nearby.

Renesmee sighed and suddenly all eyes were on her and her mother.

She couldn't bring herself to meet Jacob's gaze. Afraid that she would either let rip with a tirade of verbal abuse, along the lines of "I told you so" and "how stupid can you get?", or worse... she would run across the room and fling herself into his arms.

But she glanced quickly at him, avoiding his eyes, and felt a little easier when she realized he was physically unharmed.

The room was thick with tension. She and her mother remained standing by the front door... but after what felt like an eternity, Renesmee felt her feet carrying her forward to stand at the side of the lounge room, and she felt her mother's presence close behind her as they surveyed the scene before them.

Renesmee let out a small sigh and lifted her shoulders slightly; "why the long faces?" she asked in a lamely uplifting voice, a small crooked smile breaking across her lips involuntarily.

Only Emmett let out a rumbling laugh in reply. Typical.

Her father shot her a warning glance, and the small glimpse of his hard-edged face and red eyes told her that now was not the time for jokes.

"Sorry" she muttered, hunching her shoulders against his fiery gaze.

A long silence stretched out.

She suddenly wished that someone would yell, scream. Throw something. Anything to break the silence.

She had been unknowingly sending this mental question to one person in particular. She didn't realize until he answered her query.

"I suppose we're waiting for you to explain yourself" her father's voice was cold and distant. He hadn't brought his eyes to meet hers as he spoke.

"Oh" was all she could say, as the rest of the family looked between them questioningly.

She suddenly wondered if she could keep this just between them. A mental back and forth... it seemed more appealing than this big family affair... just her and her father...

She had been posing this question to him, but he hadn't answered her out loud. Did that mean he was giving her an opportunity in this moment to explain herself?

_I'm not a child_.

His head snapped up and his red eyes settled on her.

The movement had her sucking in a quick breath and lowering her own eyes, unable to hold his angry gaze.

No, she couldn't keep it just between them.

A cool hand touched Renesmee's arm and Bella was standing beside her, still refusing to look at her. Her mother only had eyes for her father. They stared for a moment, and then her father gave the smallest of nods, in acknowledgement of a question she had posed to him without speaking.

"You're father and I would like to speak with you..." Bella began, her voice a lovely calm lilt; "...alone".

Jacob made a move, about to say something? Or cross the room to stand beside her. But Renesmee silently asked him to stay where he was, and he remained still.

She gave the smallest of nods and felt her feet carrying toward Carlisle's study. Her mother's hand was still resting, cold and strong, on her arm... pulling her along. She hadn't even noticed as her father side-stepped around her uncles and easily glided along behind them.

In an instant the three of them were alone in the study, her mother closing the door behind them.

She didn't understand the need for privacy, since they couldn't really have any. Every vampire and werewolf in the lounge room would easily be able to hear every word they exchanged.

"The illusion, at least" Edward murmured, as he walked swiftly to sit on Carlisle's leather couch by the large window.

Renesmee wasn't concentrating. She was letting her mental guard down. _Not good_, she thought to herself, and saw her father's mouth twitch slightly.

"Are you alright?" Bella whispered, as she came to stand before her daughter. They were the same height, and her mother's eyes, as they looked into her own were full of concern.

Bella reached up and brushed her daughter's cheek affectionately with the tips of her cool fingers.

"We all felt your distress..." Bella murmured, frowning slightly as she searched her daughter's chocolate eyes.

Renesmee gave a small shrug, but turned her head slightly to her mother's soothing touch.

"I'm sorry..." Renesmee whispered.

In one fluid movement, Bella had pulled her hand down and turned away, striding across the room to stand by the large window behind the leather couch.

Renesmee swayed against the sudden absence of comfort, and then straightened her back, raising her head slightly in the hopes that she was exuding an air of determination.

_Mental gate-keeping be damned! - _Renesmee thought in a sudden rush of anxiety. She couldn't stand this tension... and then all of a sudden everything swelled in her mind. A great rush of thought and emotion poured from within...

_I am not a child_

_I love him_

_You have always known I was his imprint..._

Images played in her mind, running together like an internal monologue. A hundred small moments and memories of Jacob... cradling her in his arms when she was a child. Protecting her at the baseball field. Driving her to school. Hugging her close as she cried. Laughing as they ran together in the woods. A hundred pictures of him. Jacob, Jacob... Jacob. Her memories of him were an evolution of their bond... from big brother and protector, to confidant and friend, to... the last image was from last night. One hand cupped the side of her face, his thumb gently brushing her neck, and then he had bent down and kissed her lips. Jacob.

_Jacob._

She had been closing her eyes as she pieced together the mental puzzle. She had wanted to get every picture just right, didn't want to miss anything... now she opened her eyes to see that her mother and father were not looking at her. Edward had turned his body to look into her mother's face as she still stood behind him, at the window.

Had Renesmee not been projecting her thoughts? Had they not seen any of her mind's inner-workings?

"Renesmee..." Edward spoke her name, but did not turn to look at her straight away.

What were they not saying out loud? Renesmee wondered, watching them.

At the same time both her mother and father turned their gazes upon her.

They were beautiful. Both porcelain white, hard-edged and impossibly perfect.

She had never found her families youth to be a strange thing, not even when she had grown to match their frozen age. Carlisle and her father had lengthy discussions about the reason why she and others like her, Nahuel and his sisters as far as they knew, stopped growing once they reached the outward age of late teen. They had come to the conclusion that it was a type of Darwinism. The aging process paused on the time when they looked most attractive; exuding youthful energy. This would have two advantages; hunting, to visually appeal to the natural prey... humans. The second reason was for breeding; they were frozen in the age that would make them most appealing to mates, and best equipped for childbirth.

Should she find it strange that her parents were, for all outward appearances, the same age as her? Perhaps she should... but she had never known any differently. Her parents looked the same now as they did when she was first born. There was some comfort in that... in the permanency. From her memories to now, her parents would never change... how could she describe the comfort in that?

...It was perhaps like coming home after a long absence, to find your childhood bedroom still exactly the same. That odd wave of security that comes from knowing some things will never change. That was her parents. Constant, unchanging... always just, her parents.

"...Renesmee" her father's voice pulled her from her thoughts.

Bella had turned back to the window, had brought her arms to fold protectively across her chest as she gazed at the long stretch of forest that surrounded the big white house.

"There are things you should know about Jacob before you make any rash decisions" her father spoke calmly, and now that she studied his face she noticed that his eyes were back to their usual honey maple calm.

An image of Jacob's large russet wolf form flashed in her mind.

"Yes, it's to do with his responsibilities as Alpha of the La Push pack..." Edward confirmed her thought.

Before he began he motioned with one hand to the leather couch opposite him. Renesmee nodded once and went to sit down, crossing her ankles, straightening her back and lifting her chin slightly to try and recapture the air of determination she had held while standing.

Edward nodded once and continued.

"You know that a conundrum exists in that Jacob as their leader, cannot leave his pack. Leah as his Beta can assume the role of temporary leader, but only for a short time. His responsibilities are... ingrained. A pulling force. He will always feel _compelled _to lead them..." Edward eyed his daughter for a moment. She knew all of this, but kept a look of patience on her face, which encouraged Edward to go on.

"The only way he can leave La Push permanently is if he steps down as Alpha, if he recognizes that one of the other wolves is the new rightful leader. Sam did this years ago, bowed out gracefully from the role... he not only let go of his Alpha title, but shape-shifting all together"

She wasn't sure what the ceremony had been... or even if there _was _a ceremony. All she knew was that for a time there had been two packs when Jacob and Sam had both been Alpha. No one pack could have two leaders... and at the time Sam's original pack, to which Jacob had once belonged, was fragmented... because of her. Because Sam wanted her dead, thinking her an abomination. A shiver ran down her spine at the thought. But Jacob, Seth and Leah had decided to fight for her. It was a long drawn out story, and she had been there to witness parts of it. But what came after with the pack, she was less clear on. Quil and Embry had eventually joined Jacob's renegade pack. And then Paul and Jared... at least twenty other La Push boys had transformed into werewolves at the time of the Volturi confrontation, and a good deal of them had followed the lead of the oldest werewolves...

In the end Sam had acknowledged the renewed truce between the wolves and the Cullens, as officially sanctioned by the blood heir of chieften Black; Jacob. And that was it, as far as Renesmee knew. He had stepped down. She didn't know if there was more to the story... maybe there really was some sort of secret wolf ceremony for when one Alpha relinquishes power?... but Sam had acknowledged Jacob's truce, and Jacob's new status.

"You know what else he gave up..." Edward broke into her thoughts.

She met his eyes but didn't say anything.

Edward continued. "As long as they shape-shift, the pack will stall in age. Regularly shape-shifting will mean they remain young and healthy...".

More Darwinism.

But since the Volturi confrontation had triggered the transformation of so many young La Push boys, some no older than 12, Jacob had ordered a good many of them to stop shifting. He didn't want to lead a pack of forever-children who would take decades to reach puberty. And it had worked. The youngest continued to grow and age normally, while Quil, Leah, Seth Embry, Paul, Jared and Jacob had all remained frozen at the age of eighteen/nineteen (well, _sixteen _for Seth, but he was so tall he could easily be mistaken for much older...).

"Sam gave up being a wolf for more than just the sake of harmony within the pack, though" Edward continued. "Once he started aging at a normal rate, he and Emily could start a family... could _really _start growing old together, and be with one another forever".

But what he really meant, Renesmee mused, was 'as long as they both shall live'.

But it wouldn't be like that for her and Jacob.

"Exactly" Edward interjected her thoughts.

"I know all of this" Renesmee finally spoke.

"Do you really though?" Bella's voice was barely above a whisper, but had a sharp edge to it. She hadn't looked away from the window as she spoke.

"If you want forever with him, you will have to stay here... he will have to keep leading the pack..." Bella continued.

"The pack only exists so long as vampires are around to threaten their community. You are half-vampire. If you stay with Jacob, the pack will always need to exist" her words were clear and cutting; "... Think of what your presence in La Push will mean for the rest of the pack".

She didn't wait for an answer or acknowledgement that Renesmee understood, she just kept talking. "You will be forcing them to live for as long as you and Jacob... stuck with you both, in your 'forever'. You will be forcing them to stand by as their human imprints and families grow old, without them, and eventually die"

Bella turned from the window now, her arms still folded across her chest. Her face was like marble, set in its determination as she looked at Renesmee.

Renesmee felt the hot tears prick at her eyes, but her mother didn't stop. She kept talking, kept plunging the knife in deeper...; "The alternative is that you and Jacob move with us... which would mean Jacob stepping down as Alpha..."

Edward looked up now, into his daughter's tear-streaked face. "Bella!" his voice hissed, warning.

Bella didn't stop. She looked into her daughter's face and said; "He will grow old. You will not. He will die. You will not. Those are your options. Selfish love, or sacrifice".

She was shaking. She blinked back the tears but the room was still no more than a watery haze.

So, _those_ were her options.

Why hadn't she seen them until now?

Why had she understood all sides to this situation without really seeing the big picture?

_Because_, Renesmee thought to herself, _love is blind._


	6. Chapter 6

_**But love is blind, and lovers cannot see,**_

_**The pretty follies that themselves commit.  **_

_William Shakespeare, "The Merchant of Venice"_

--

Bella watched as lines of pain became etched onto her daughter's beautiful face.

That face. The perfect blend of her old human self and Edward's beautiful immortality. Her chocolate brown eyes, his marble-smooth skin. Plump red lips. Edward's red-wine hair, long curling tendrils that hung down her back and framed her heart-shaped face. Her face that flushed a beautiful pink to signal embarrassment and excitement. Her daughter's face.

Bella watched as the tears ran down Renesmee's burning red cheeks, and as she watched she felt a small jolt of joy.

_Good. This is good._ she thought, and felt Edward's eyes on her.

_It will pass. _She said to him without speaking. _With time, this pain will fade. _

"We can't..." Renesmee choked out the words, and in an instant her head was in Edward's lap. She curled into a ball and let the tears come, while Edward ran his hands through her hair, pressed his palms to her burning cheeks.

"Hush, baby..." he whispered.

In the lounge room Bella could hear the beginnings of protest coming from Jacob. He was probably demanding that Emmett and Jasper let him into the study... they wouldn't, of course.

"I wanted him..." Renemsee whispered, through the cracks in her voice.

"I know, darling" Edward continued to soothe, without success.

It took all of Bella's vampiric strength to not go and sit beside her husband and help him comfort their child. She instead forced herself to walk to the study door and walk through...

"Move!" Jacob was growling.

"Down, mutt!" Emmett hissed back.

"Throw him out!" Rosalie bellowed from upstairs.

Suddenly everyone was silenced as Bella stepped back into the room.

"Let me see her!" Jacob demanded. He stood a few feet behind Jasper and Emmett, who were square-shouldered before him. He would not provoke a fight in this house, but judging from the fury in his face it was taking a lot of self-control...

"You should leave, Jacob" Bella answered him coolly.

"Fat chance!" he spat back.

"She doesn't want to see you right now..." Bella replied as though Jacob's response had been wholly cordial.

"After you filled her head with lies!" Jacob roared back.

Leah was still standing in the corner, back to the wall. She was watching the scene before her with a calm detachment. She knew Jacob would not start a fight _inside _the Cullen house, but the second he gave the word she would be transforming and ready to step outside...

"I told her the truth," Bella continued to speak evenly, "I made her see _sense_".

Jacob let out an inhuman growl, forgetting for a moment that he was not in fact a wolf right now.

"Down, boy." Emmett mumbled.

Jacob flashed him an angry glare, and any other snide remarks Emmett had intended for him stuck in his throat.

"Let me see her!" Jacob ordered again.

"Not today, Jacob." Bella replied coolly.

"_Renesmee!_" Jacob yelled.

So attuned to her daughter, Bella recognized another small whimper as she heard Jacob say her name... and Bella felt her stomach clench.

Jacob too felt sucker-punched at hearing that small sound of pain, and refrained from calling out to her a second time.

"I am sure you two will have a lot to discuss..." Bella began, "..._later_", she emphasized.

Jacob shook his head, but seemed placated by the promise of having a private conversation with Renesmee..._ later_.

"We won't stop her from seeing you," Bella pushed his sudden placation, "..._if _that's what she wants" she added.

"She will" Jacob whispered, and as he said the words he silently prayed that there was some ounce of truth behind them.

"So then..." Bella began.

Jacob motioned to Leah and she headed for the door, Bella listened to the ripping sound that signalled the Beta's transformation.

Jacob slowly headed toward the door, Emmett walking close behind.

He stopped before he walked through the door. Jacob looked past Bella, at the closed door of the study.

Then his eyes focused on Bella's, and his eyes narrowed.

"You always knew what she meant to me..." he whispered.

Bella nodded once.

"You know what I will do for her..." Jacob started, and Bella quickly cut him off.

"That is for you and Renesmee to discuss," she said evenly.

And then he was gone. A large russet wolf running into the woods, flanked by a silver and golden wolf, followed by two more...

Bella turned on her heel, and started toward the study.

"That went well," Carlisle spoke from the living room, but Bella was already back in the study before she'd had time to respond to her father in laws' words.

"Jacob wanted me to tell you..." Edward was saying, still caressing Renesmee's burning cheek, "...that he will be waiting for you," he finished, and Renesmee gave a small nod.

Bella looked down at her crumpled daughter, huddled against Edward's chest.

_Yes, _Bella thought to herself, _everything is going according to plan..._

* * *

--

_**EIGHT years earlier...**_

"If she stays in Forks, they will come for her, eventually". Bella's voice did not break, did not waver.

"Aro has had her marked for his collection from the first moment he understood what she was". Edward added, looking into each and every one of his family members faces.

It had been two weeks since they stood before the Volturi family and guard. Edward had later told Bella what he saw in Aro's mind, and they had waited two weeks before bringing the problem to the rest of the family. Two weeks. They deserved that, at least. After everything, they deserved a little time for celebration and peace...

"So we'll trade" Alice's voice spoke without hesitation, she let her eyes rest on Jasper, Edward and then settle on Bella's face. "The four of us, and he leaves Ness alone".

Edward noted that his words had come as a shock to Alice. Was that a good sign? Aro's intentions were not in Alice's foreseeable future. But that didn't mean anything. It only told him that Aro had no plans in place yet. He was going to bide his time. How long though?

"No, Alice" Bella said, shaking her head. If she thought that a life of servitude would keep her daughter from the Volturi's grasp, she would give it without hesitation. She would even offer what was not hers to give; Jasper and Alice's lives. But Edward had told her that Aro intended great things for Renesmee, and would not settle for anything less than her.

"So we pack up and leave, _now_. As soon as possible" Rosalie cut in, her voice sharp and perfect in its determination.

Bella and Edward shared a long glance, and then Edward shook his head; "Jacob will follow her anywhere..." he started.

"She's a child..." Esme began, but once again Edward heard her words and interjected.

"Imprinting is such a force to the wolves. I can't even begin to describe what I see in their heads..." Edward shook his head slightly, choosing his words carefully, "They _need _their imprints... it's as though they find the other half to themselves when they imprint, and I see that it is a permanent link..."

"So what then?" Emmett bellowed, tiring of the round-about conversation.

"The only thing that will keep her here is Jacob" Jasper lowered his voice as he spoke. "He could give one final order..." Jasper began.

Edward heard where his thought was going and shook his head. "Jacob could, in theory, order his pack to stop shifting. But if there is no pack to lead, we don't know if Jacob's shape-shifting will stop too..."

"In which case he will start aging normally while Renesmee remains immortal" Bella finished for her husband.

"When we leave, the wolves are going to stop shifting anyway. They will all go back to aging at a normal rate..." Alice cut in.

"Exactly". Edward cut her off.

"We wait for her to sever the link," Bella spoke in a hushed voice, but all eyes were suddenly on her.

"What?" Carlisle spoke on everybody's behalf.

Bella looked up at her family. "We don't even know if it will work. I don't know how..." Bella trailed off for a moment, lost in her own thoughts. She nodded her head firmly and cleared her voice to speak again. "We have to convince Renesmee, when she is old enough, that there is no possible way for her and Jacob to be together. She will have to tell him... she will have to reject him"

"She can't..." Carlisle began, but Edward cut him off.

"We have to try" he said sharply.

Carlisle shook his head; "You think that Jacob will just accept...?" he began.

Edward cut in again. "It's not as though Renesmee will be tied to him the same way he is to her. She has a _choice_... we've never seen one of the wolves rejected by their imprint, but that's not to say it hasn't happened before. The imprint is only one-way; the other half is still based on choice for the human females".

"She is half-vampire, Edward" Carlisle spoke above his son's voice, not caring that he had already heard the words in his mind.

"I realize that..." Edward tried to explain, but Carlisle's voice rose.

"When _we_ choose our mates it is just as strong a link as the wolves imprints..." unconsciously, Esme had swayed slightly toward Carlisle as he spoke, as though his body were a magnet, a pulling force. Her action proving Carlisle's point.

"So we leave before she matures and chooses him..." Rosalie cut in between her father and brother, her voice full of residual determination.

Alice shook her head, "I have no way of knowing when that will happen..." she shrugged slightly, "Wolves and half-species aren't my specialty", Jasper reached for her hand at hearing the apology in her voice, and squeezed reassuringly.

"We have thought about all of this!" Bella's voice suddenly broke in. All eyes were back to her. She shivered slightly as the anger and frustration coursed through her body, she ground her teeth and spoke in a harsh whisper. "We have made our decision..." and her eyes landed on Edward.

"What!?" Esme cut in, Carlisle wrapped an arm around her waist as he looked toward his son.

Edward rose from where he sat on the single sofa, and went to stand beside Bella. He mimicked his father's gesture, wrapping one arm around his wife's middle.

"Aro will come for Renesmee when she has fully matured" he heard the same question echoed throughout the minds of all the Cullen family. "He intends for her to..." he swallowed hard against the anger that rose as he spoke the last word, "...breed".

Esme let out a strangled choke, Rosalie bared her teeth in a snarl that had Emmett coming to her side, and Alice gripped tighter onto Jasper's hand.

"What...?" Carlisle whispered.

"Once Chelsea has Renesmee under Aro's thumb, she will do anything for him..." the anger was rising as Edward spoke, but he fought to keep his voice level and coherent. "Aro will have her mate with his guard... Alec, Demetri... and any other gifted vampires he collects in the future."

"Gifted vampires..." Carlisle whispered.

Edward nodded. "Aro thinks that if he had Renesmee he would no longer have to go searching for the gifted amongst our kind. He's had trouble doing that ever since Eleazar left... but if he had Renesmee to breed for him... he could custom-make gifted vampires for his collection".

Rosalie let rip with deep, guttural growl.

Esme slowly shook her head, and leaned in closer to Carlisle.

"We don't even know if Renesmee will be able to..." Carlisle began, but Edward heard the rest and answered before Carlisle had finished the sentence.

"We don't, but that doesn't mean Aro won't try" he let out an involuntary snarl at the thought.

"And it is very likely that Renesmee _will_ be capable..." Bella added.

Carlisle raised one eyebrow and Bella continued. "Sam Uley has always thought that wolves imprint on whoever can provide them with the healthiest off-spring"

Carlisle nodded slowly. "So proof that Renesmee could potentially bear children is that Jacob imprinted on her..."

"It's only a theory but, _yes_" Bella ended.

Rosalie let out a low hiss.

"So, what did you decide...?" Alice asked, looking from Edward to Bella and back again.

"We are _not _going to let Aro get his hands on the kid!" Emmett answered before his brother could even open his mouth. Emmett brought one big strong hand to rest on Rosalie's shoulder, and her hissing stopped.

"_Never_!" Rosalie agreed with her mate.

Edward nodded in thanks, but tightened his grip on Bella as he answered Alice's question. "Renesmee cannot stay here. If Jacob decides to follow us and be with Renesmee he _will _have to step down as Alpha and stop shifting. That means he will die, eventually..."

"You don't want to put Renesmee through that." Carlisle finished, and Edward nodded.

"The only thing that we can think to do is take Renesmee with us when the time comes. But Jacob will have to stay here. He and the rest of the pack will have no more need to shape-shift once we are gone..." Edward paused, and Bella took the opportunity to finish for him.

"... We don't know if it is possible, but Jacob should stay here and live out his life, _without _his imprint. Try to be as normal as possible..." she let out a deep sigh, "well, as close to normal as he can get".

"What if he _can't _live without her?" Esme asked in her small voice.

Edward shrugged. "We will hope that he can..."

"What if we explain all of this to him, and he _chooses _to follow her, regardless?" Jasper interjected.

The handsome blond vampire hadn't spoken much in the last hour or so. Clearly the emotional tension in the room was a lot for him to handle, and he had been dealing with the uncomfortable atmosphere by gripping onto Alice's hand to steady himself.

He looked at Alice now, sitting by his side. A small half-smile reached his lips, "I know what I would choose, if it were me" he whispered, and Alice mirrored his small smile.

"No!" Bella cut in. Jasper and Alice broke their gaze and looked at her in alarm.

"I will not let Jacob sacrifice himself like that... not when there is the _possibility _that he doesn't have to". Her voice was sure, and nobody debated the fact further.

Silence hung around them for a few minutes, before Emmett's booming voice broke in.

"Well _I'll _state the bloody obvious if nobody else is going to...!" he practically yelled.

"No!" Edward answered him before he had a chance to clarify.

"It's a better idea than I've heard so far..." Emmett argued. "Better than your plan to 'cut and run' the second Ness gets attached to the mutt!"

"I said 'no', Emett..." Edward growled.

Emmett growled right back as he spat the words out. "And run where exactly? And for how long...?"

"As long as we have to!" Edward yelled back.

"What? Until Aro dies of old age, brother? Because unless you haven't noticed a thing or two about us _immortals_..." Emmett thundered.

"NO!" Edward snarled.

"WHAT?!" Rosalie interjected, reaching out to grab one of Emmett's giant hands.

"He wants us to go on a suicide mission and kill the Volturi!" Edward answered her.

"Like we _should _have done two weeks ago...!" Emmett added.

"Too late now. It would be us against them... none of the other clans or wanderers would come to our aid if we were only fighting for Renesmee..." Edward spoke calmly again.

"He's right, Emmett" Carlisle offered, with a sigh. "It would be a suicide mission, us against them..."

"We have a shield!" Rosalie cut in, eyeing Bella.

"There are still too many of them," Carlisle clarified.

"Do you really think that we could escape the Volturi for long if they had Demetri hunting Renesmee?" Jasper offered, looking at Edward.

Edward could hear Jasper calculating, swayed by Emmett's suggestion of battle. Jasper, always the soldier, ready to fight.

"Demetri is one vampire, when the time comes of course we will try and eliminate him, _quietly_..." Edward spoke, looking at Emmett.

"It's not a perfect plan," Carlisle interjected.

"We know," Bella answered her father in law.

"But we have six years in which to perfect it..." Edward added with a nod.

And then he stopped suddenly, his head lifting to the front door... his attention pulled by his daughter's thoughts.

"They're back" he murmured to Bella.

There was no need, Bella had smelt her daughter at the same time as Edward had heard her.

And now as they approached the house, the rest of the family could smell the familiar wolf who had suddenly become a regular at the Cullen house...

"We will discuss this later..." Carlisle murmured, rising from his place on the couch.

"I imagine we will discuss it many times over the next few years..." Edward answered in a whisper, and held on tight to Bella as they both turned to the door, waiting for Renesmee to appear.


	7. Chapter 7

He had waited all of yesterday. His entire body pulling and tensing like a bow-string at every small sound as the late afternoon ran into pitch black night and then eased back into morning.

She hadn't come.

Billy had grown tired of watching his son's anxiety, it was spreading like a fog throughout the small house. When Jake suddenly threw a drinking glass into the sink, the breaking sound reverberating throughout the house, Billy had called Sam Uley to come and pick him up.

No longer apart of the pack, not even a shape-shifter, Billy had had to throw Sam a weary glance pleading for silence when he'd entered the house and took in Jacob's agitation.

"I'll be back tomorrow, or the next day." Billy had said, resting a heavy hand on his son's shoulder.

"The kids will be glad to see their uncle Billy." Sam had murmured, lifting a small over-night bag onto his shoulder.

Jacob gave a small nod, but said nothing.

"Have some faith in her..." Billy whispered, removing his hand and wheeling himself toward the door where Sam stood, bewildered.

And then Jacob was alone, and waiting.

Waiting.

The tension he carried seemed to grow and expand with every minute he was alone with his thoughts.

When was the last time he had kissed her?

With a jolt he realized it had been here. At his house. It had been a goodbye kiss, Charlie and Billy would be back within half an hour, and Ness couldn't let her grandfather see her here to report back to her parents...

They had been standing by her car. She had gone on her tippy-toes, and he had closed the distance between them by bending down slightly and kissing her soft and long...

_Don't let that be the last time, _Jacob thought to himself. _Please?_

It had grown dark again.

His anxiety had doubled since replaying that kiss in his mind. What if that had been the last time? Could he recall every small detail? Her red curls falling down her back. Her swollen lips. Her smell... that blend of her, the smell of morning, lilacs, warmth... If he had to hold onto no more than memories, could he recall her in his mind perfectly? Could that be enough to get him through the rest of his long life... just the memory of her? The memory of what they'd had together?

No,

How to explain what she was to him?

Once he had known what Renesmee was to him, when he had looked into her babies face... a sense of calm washed over him. Everything would be alright. He had found her. He had a centre to his life, something to gravitate towards... something to hope for.

How could you describe finding purpose? A moment of clarity amidst confusion? It was an indescribable feeling...

Jacob's head snapped up.

He looked to the window, seeing the inky black night.

There she was.

Morning, lilacs, warmth, a fluttering heartbeat... _Nessie. _

Jacob felt his body slacken with the comfort of her presence.

She was a few minutes away, driving, but she had come. She would be here soon.

He stood up, and just stared at the door... waiting, again.

She knocked once, and he breathed her name.

There. There she was.

He moved to her then, like a magnet, and let out a sigh of relief at having her in his arms.

She brought her arms around his middle for a moment, but then let them drop.

He let her go then, and looked down into her face.

Where to begin?

"It was all lies, Ness." he said simply.

She shook her head.

He reached out and cupped her head in his hands, "we can work, we have to." he whispered.

She looked into his eyes then, and he let out another sigh of contentment. Chocolate and brilliant.

He was overwhelmed with the comfort of having her. One hand nonchalantly ran through her red hair, and he smiled slightly as the movement caused the smell of lilacs to burst around him once again...

"Jacob..." her voice broke.

He stopped stroking, and creased his brow as he looked down at her.

She reached up and slowly pulled his hands away from her.

He nodded once, and turned, walking slowly toward the couch where he sat down awkwardly and lifted his head to look at her, one eyebrow raised.

She wanted to talk. Fine, he would listen... and then he would make her see that what her parents had said was all pointless. She was his imprint, that fact alone was proof that they would work...

"What happens when your imprint dies?" she whispered.

He didn't say anything. He looked down at his hands, but felt her still staring.

"Could you imagine it...?" she edged.

"No." he replied, quickly.

"What happens, Jacob?" she asked again, still in a whisper, but firmer this time.

"I don't know." he said, honestly.

"Do you only get one imprint?" she let out a small sigh.

"I don't know, Ness."

A thought suddenly hit him, and his head snapped up.

"No." he replied firmly.

Not his own thought. Sepia-toned. An image of him standing beside a faceless woman.

Renesmee shrugged slightly, "you could find somebody else..."

"No!"

Without thinking he had stood up and bound across the room, yanked her up by her arms and was crushing her body against his.

She struggled, he wasn't hurting her, not physically at least.

He eased his grip, but kept his hands on her arms, pushing her away from him slightly so he could look down into her face.

Her eyes were wet with the threat of tears, her plump bottom lip was quivering.

"I wish that _I _could make _you_ see..." he whispered, and then brought his face down to meet hers, pushing his lips against hers.

She struggled against him for a moment, and then she let go. She parted her lips and enjoyed the warmth of him, basked in the heat that their bodies radiated... and then he was gone, was looking into her face again.

"I only see you. I only want you..." he whispered.

An image of Quil holding Claire flashed in his mind, followed by a flash-back of Jared and Kim

dancing at Paul and Rachel's wedding.

His mind went blank and he was staring into Renesmee's face, the tears slowly running down her cheeks.

"What about _them_?" she whispered.

She played the images again, and he shook his head against the intrusion.

"Stop it!" he barked, letting go of his hold on her arms.

"Think about living with them once they died..." Renesmee's voice was small, but pleading.

"Think about having to live day in, day out inside Quil, Paul and Jared's heads once their imprints died..." she kept pushing.

"Ness..." Jacob tried to interject, but the image ran through his thoughts again.

"Could you do it? Could you ask them to go on living for our sake...?"

For a moment Jacob had an independent thought that made him sick to his stomach for having ever let it pass through his head. He wouldn't have to _ask _them, he thought disgustedly, he could simply _order _them to... and suddenly he was glad that Renesmee couldn't read his mind.

"...Because _I_ won't." Her whisper broke through his thoughts.

He looked down and saw that the tears had stopped, her eyes were dull, unseeing as she spoke the words.

"Ness..." he hedged.

She shook her head once, blinked, and forced her eyes to meet his.

"We can't do this, Jacob..." she whispered.

If she said anything else, he didn't hear her. His heart was pounding in his ears, it was too loud, too painful...

And then she was in his arms...

Had he reached for her? Or had she clung to him...?

He didn't know. All he knew was that her lips were against his and her hands were running through his thick hair, pulling him down to her.

He reached down and gathered her up, her legs wrapped around his middle and he carried her to the bedroom, laying her down gently but her legs tightened and he had to use his arms to stay suspended slightly above her, careful not to crush her under his weight...

Her mouth parted invitingly and he kissed her back ferociously.

The need was overpowering... he needed her. He wanted her.

She replied by arching her back slightly, her body seeking out his own... it pressed flat against his and he let out a low groan.

Her hands left his hair, ran down his back and were suddenly tugging at his shirt, pulling it over his head.

His lips left hers for a moment while he helped her struggle out of the blue blouse she was wearing... and then her back was arching again, but this time skin met skin and his moan grew louder.

He ignored her thoughts as they reached out... if he let himself examine them carefully... he didn't want to think. He just wanted her.

But they were so loud. Screaming, in his head.

_Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye..._

NO! He replied silently with his body as he rolled over and pulled her on-top of him. And then she started to move to the rhythm their bodies had created.

_I can't, we can't... I'm sorry._

He let out another moan, but the thoughts were still there.

_Goodbye, Jacob._

But her body was opening up to him, there was no goodbye here. There couldn't be. She was his, and he was hers...

_It's not enough, I'm sorry..._

Not enough? Who could ask for more? He reached out a hand to cup the side of her flushed face, and she turned to his burning touch, kissing his hand and then biting down hard, her eyes closing in ecstasy...

_I love you. Goodbye._

And then it was over.

But he still wanted her... still craved her.

He pulled her down to lie on his chest, but she struggled to sit upright.

And in one fluid movement she was standing, bending down and reaching for her jeans, pulling them on and shrugging into her blue blouse.

"Ness!" he commanded, but she didn't stop.

She shook her head, felt the tears sting but kept her hands moving as they pulled on her boots.

"This was wrong. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have..." she began.

"Ness!" he bellowed again.

She continued to shake her head, "I'm so sorry, Jacob."

He sprang out of bed, blindly pulling on his jeans and then reaching for her, pulling her to look at him.

"We're leaving..." she whispered, "...tonight."

No. No. No.

"Ness, this is ridiculous... let me explain..."

She pulled free of his grasp and brought a hand to rest against his cheek. "I'm sorry." she murmured.

He reached up and pressed her hand harder against him, "what was this? You can't just walk away from..." he began.

Tears pricked at her eyes again, but she shook her head slightly. "This was goodbye, Jacob..."

A memory flashed in his mind. It was tinged with perspective... it had just happened. Renesmee looking down at Jacob not a moment ago, and through the clarity of her thoughts he saw himself as she saw him... and there was nothing but love.

"I wanted you, just once..." she whispered, explaining what he was seeing.

"Don't leave me." his voice broke then, and he saw the tears in her eyes.

"You heard what my parents said, and you can't tell me it wasn't the truth..." she whispered.

Jacob shook his head. He had heard. He didn't care.

How did this happen? He had been prepared to talk to her, to explain everything. Now it was all slipping away...

"You are mine!" he said, gripping her by the shoulders and forcing her eyes to meet his, "It's simple. You were meant for me, nothing else matters."

"But it does." she replied, barely a whisper.

He shook his head. "We haven't even talked about..." he began.

"It was always going to be this way." she murmured, "If I have you, then everyone else in the pack suffers. If you leave La Push, then I lose you eventually..."

"I don't care!" he bellowed.

She looked horror-struck. Her mouth hung open slightly, and a fine line appeared between her eyes.

"Wh-what?"

He spoke with such force and determination, it scared her.

"I'll stop shifting. I'll age normally, but I'll be with you..."

She shook her head. "No!"

"I want you. I'll take whatever I can get..."

"Well I won't!" she practically screamed at him.

She was shaking beneath his hands.

"You think I want to watch you grow old without me? Do you really think I could bear to stand by and watch as you died, year by year, day by day..." she shook her head, "I couldn't..." in a whisper now, "it would kill me."

"Being without you would kill _me_!" he hissed back.

He thought back to past conversations with Edward.

"Before your mother turned, your father had every intention to stay with her until the day she died..." Jacob began.

"And then he was going to follow her..." she finished, "I know the story, Jacob" she murmured.

Her eyes glazed with a new fury. "I am _not _my parents!"

He felt a jab of ice-cold pain. So she wouldn't sacrifice herself the way her father had been willing to? Of course he wouldn't want to think of her dead, especially not by suicide. But it still hurt to know she didn't care enough...

"I would gladly die to be with you. But I will not stand by and watch as you tear yourself away from everything you know and love just to follow me and my family around..." she broke his thoughts, and unintentionally eased his sudden pain. "Not when you can have something more..."

The image of Jacob standing beside the faceless woman flashed again. Except this time the woman became Leah and two black-haired children appeared in his arms.

He shook her again and the images stopped.

"NO!" he barked.

_Goodbye, Jacob._

The words rang clear in his head, and he gripped her tighter. In response she quickly and powerfully broke free of his grasp and stood a little in front of him, with distance between them...

"Maybe everything would have worked out if I had been..." she almost choked on the last word, "...human." She shook her head slightly, "But I'm not, so maybe your imprint got all screwed up and that's why..." she couldn't say the rest.

"Ness, we can..."

"No, we can't. That's what I am trying to tell you." she cut in.

"Please..." he begged.

She quickly reached out a hand, brushing his cheek, and then she pulled it back to her side, shaking her head again. "Forget about me, Jacob..."

And then she was gone.

He heard the Volvo's engine, could feel her pulling away, but he couldn't move.

His legs were lead.

His heartbeat was throbbing in his head.

He couldn't move.

He was broken... or at least, the most important part of him was broken.


	8. Chapter 8

**The woods are lovely, dark and deep. **

**But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep.**

_- Robert Frost._

_Breathe. Breathe. Breathe._

Her hands gripped the wheel so tightly that her knuckles were slowly turning white.

_Breathe. Breathe. Breathe._

Her tears stung and cast everything in a blurry watered gaze, she had to keep blinking in order to see what was before her.

_Breathe. Breathe. Breathe..._

It was no good trying to remain calm. Her entire body was trembling and her breathing was coming out in thick sobbing gasps.

A new mantra began to chime in her mind...

_Jacob. Jacob. Jacob._

The last image she would have of him would be of the tears welling up in his eyes... his forehead creased in disbelief and his hands balled up into tight fists.

She would have an eternity what that parting image of him. She shivered slightly at the thought.

And that eternity without Jacob was going to begin tonight. Her family were packing up the house right this moment... they already had a few houses abroad that were always fully furnished, just waiting for whenever the Cullens needed a quick escape. That time had come.

A new bout of body racking sobs took over and Renesmee was forced to pull the silver Volvo onto a dirt shoulder of the road. Nothing but woods all around, she rolled the windows down to gulp in the fresh smell and let the ice cold blast of night air cool her flushed cheeks.

_Jacob. Jacob. Jacob._

God, this hurt so much. She let herself shake violently as the pain washed over her anew...

She slowly leaned her head forward and rested her brow on the steering wheel, letting her hands slide down to rest limp in her lap as a new bout of sobs took over.

She couldn't even tell him where they were going... only that they were leaving, tonight. Well, she couldn't really have told him more than that because that was all her parent's had told _her. _

"I can't do this." Renesmee had whispered as her mother came to sit on the edge of her bed.

"You have to." Bella replied calmly.

Renesmee nodded slowly, "I know, but what if I can't bring myself to say the words...?"

"You will." was all Bella had said.

Something pulled Renesmee out of her thoughts and had her straightening in her seat.

Wolves? She thought, registering a sound coming from the woods...

She turned her head to where she thought the sound had come from. It would be far away, it was just her super-human vampire hearing that had alerted her.

As she listened now she realized that all of the sounds in the woods were reverberating around her, but her instincts dismissed them.

Why had her head lifted at _that _sound?

What was it?

Not wolves. She was well and truly out of La Push now... far away from Jacob.

The thought clenched her heart.

She slowly undid her seat belt and reached for the door handle, pushing it open and easing herself out of the car.

What if it was one of the pack?

Leah, or Seth, following her?

What if it was Jacob – too far away to smell just yet...

Her heart pulsed at the thought.

She stood looking across the road into the woods, the asphalt stretch between her and the place she thought the sound had come from...

And then it came again.

She walked forward, until she was standing in the middle of the road, facing the woods.

The moon was out tonight and cast a light blue haze over everything, but offered no light into what lay beyond the woods...

That sound again, and upon hearing it Jacob's face flashed in her mind.

Her heart beat quicker.

A small smile fluttered across her face...

_Jacob. Jacob. Jacob._

The smile quickly slipped away as a burst of wind reached her, and with it a scent.

Not Jacob.

Not a wolf.

That smell... it belonged somewhere in the recesses of her memory.

She knew that smell... but from where?

_Vampire._

She knew that much from the slight metallic taste in the air.

Not a vegetarian, she clarified with another lungful.

_Vampire'**s**_**.**

She amended, and felt a small bead of sweat run down the nape of her neck.

Where were they? Why weren't they showing themselves...

Answering her silent question, a tall broad-shouldered form stepped out from the shadows of the woods to stand on the edge of the road.

"Miss Cullen, I presume?"

His voice was bold and clear.

He stepped into the moonlight and she realized with detached understanding that he was handsome. White skin, auburn hair, chiseled jaw... a vampire. Of course he was beautiful.

"My, how you have _grown_..." he drawled, his eyes appraising her, from head to foot.

The field. The Volturi. She had been a child then... one month old but she remembered everything. Even him.

What was his name?...

With the realization came a surge of adrenalin and fear. Her skin prickled as the hairs on her arms stood up, she felt another bead of sweat roll down her temple...

_Demetri. _

He smiled brilliantly, flashing white, menacing teeth.

"Ah, so you _do _remember me?" he raised an eyebrow.

She gave the smallest of nods, and lifted one foot, about to retreat backwards.

Something moved behind her, and her body suspended.

"I wonder, do you remember my associate...?" Demetri nodded once and in no time at all another, slightly smaller figure had come to stand beside him, appraising Renesmee in the same way as Demetri had a moment ago.

_Alec._

The other vampire smiled. One half, an image of the deadly cherubic Jane flashed in her mind... Alec's smile broadened, pleased to know that she did indeed remember him.

And then... nothing.

After Jane's sweet face, an absurd thought crossed Renesmee's mind. Today was Tuesday. She had missed cheer-leading try-outs. An image of Mary, stung and crest-fallen flashed in her mind for one second, and then... nothing.

Her limbs felt heavy. She could no longer smell the two vampires that stood before her. Her eyelids slowly closed and she felt... nothing.

Nothing.

Her thoughts emptied and she was unconscious, floating in a black abyss...


	9. Chapter 9

Jacob arrived at the big house and was surprised to see all of the luxury and sports cars still assembled outside.

He breathed a deep sigh of relief as he threw his Ute into park and leaped out, bounding up the steps and pushing the door open.

Eight pairs of eyes landed on him as he burst into the hallway.

"Where is she?" he bellowed.

Bella slowly slid to an awkward sitting position on the bottom stair, her back hunched, she started convulsing.

"What...?" Jacob began dumbly.

Emmett's hands were around his neck in another moment, his black eyes inches from Jacob's as he let out a low hiss.

"That's what we'd like to know..." Rosalie spoke on her mate's behalf, a low but menacing tenor to her voice.

It took all of Jacob's strength to not transform under Emmett's powerful grip.

Eventually the large vampires hand slackened and Jacob opened his eyes to see that Carlisle was standing between them. Emmett had stepped back to allow Carlisle to take up the menacing position in front of Jacob.

"I abhor violence..." Carlisle spoke evenly, but with a cold edge to his normally pleasant tone, "...but this regards my grand-daughter, and for her I will most definitely make an exception."

"Where is she?" Jacob whispered low, but so there was no mistaking the equally cold edge to his query.

Rosalie opened her mouth, about to reiterate her previous statement, but Jacob cut in.

"She came to my house at around midnight and left an hour later..."

An image of Renesmee's arched back flashed in Jacob's mind quite uncontrollably and it was only by the violent head-jerk that Jacob remembered Edward was in the hallway. Edward's eyes became dark slits, but then his head was suddenly turned back to Alice who Jacob had also paid little attention to. The little pixie was standing in front of Edward, not saying anything, her eyes closed deep in concentration.

"How long ago was that?" Carlisle cut into his distracted noticing.

"About twenty minutes ago." Jacob replied bluntly.

Bella's shoulders continued to shake as she sat on the bottom step, except now Jasper had come to sit on one side of her, throwing an arm around her shoulders, his brow frowned in deep concentration... his attempts seemed to have little effect on Bella's current state of distress.

Esme was noticing Jasper's short-comings as well, and had moved to sit on the other side of Bella, pressing her lips to Bella's temple and whispering small murmurs against her skin.

"I can't..." Alice was saying, her eyes still closed.

Suddenly seven pairs of eyes had left Jacob to turn on the little black-haired vampire elf.

Although the Cullens were clearly agitated and incredibly furious, Jacob was somewhat calm... and even a little smug, he noted quickly, lest Edward should take action against Jacob's displeasing thought.

Obviously Renesmee was distressed and hadn't come straight home. She was upset, of course she was! Her family had just forced her, in all likelihood, to break the heart of the man she loved...

A thought suddenly flashed in his mind, a thought that had a warmth spreading from his chest to touch every fibre of his being...

She had turned around.

She was on her way home, upset and coming to her senses, and she had turned around... she was going back to him!

And he, stupidly, had taken the town-route to the Cullen's house instead of the woods back-road. He would have seen her if he hadn't been so hell-bent on getting to her house quickly...

"No."

Jacob stopped. He had been half-turned, about to spring through the door and race back to his Ute, to break every single one of Forks's speed-signs and get back to La Push where Renesmee was waiting for him.

He slowly turned to see that Edward's eyes were still locked on Alice's anxious face, and he wasn't sure if he had even said anything, until Edward spoke again.

"She isn't." Edward clarified, and Jacob let out a low growl.

"You don't know her as well as you think..." Jacob began, his voice quivering under the strain of his anger.

A cold force pushed flat against his chest and Jacob found himself lying flat on the porch. The Cullen's front door underneath him, ripped from its hinges.

Carlisle's stance hadn't changed, but his eyes were an uncharacteristic black.

"This isn't about _you_." Carlisle hissed.

Jacob composed himself from the shock of Gandhi-Vamp having just exerted hostilities against him for no good reason.

Something was afoot in the Cullen house, and Jacob was sick of not knowing what.

He leaped to his feet and pushed past a momentarily surprised Carlisle and Emmett to shove Edward out of the way and place his big hot hands on Alice's shoulders, shaking her slightly.

She opened her eyes, and they darted quickly to Edward, silently warning him off...

"Wait." Edward commanded of Jasper, Emmett and Carlisle who had come to Alice's rescue.

Jacob could head Jasper snapping close behind him.

"Where is she?" Jacob asked.

Alice let out an unnecessary deep sigh. "I. Don't. Know." She said, impatience and anger warring in her voice.

"What do you mean, how can _you_ not know?" He hissed back.

Rosalie's prim voice cut in, dripping with sarcasm, "Welcome to the same page we're all on, Fido!".

His eyes didn't leave Alice's.

"Something is wrong. I can't see her..." Alice whispered.

"How can that...?" Jacob began, but Alice tensed underneath him.

"...The last thing I saw was all of us driving to the airport. I had that vision three hours ago..." Alice cut him off.

"_All_ of you?" Jacob raised an eyebrow, and Alice nodded.

"Ness left to see you and I was still seeing the same vision... and then..."

Jacob's grip tightened, "and then?" he prompted.

Alice shook her head. "Your kind are one big blind-spot to me. You and Ness. I normally only get a hold on her if her decisions are linked with ours..." she nodded briefly to the seven eyes watching her and Jacob intently.

"...And then I lost her. The vision was replaced..." Alice began, unsure. Her head turned and landed on Edward, they were exchanging something...

"Replaced?" Jacob enquired, trying to break their silent conversation.

Alice turned back to him. "I've had enough of this." she said evenly, "Kindly let go of me before I rip your arms from your body and beat you to death with them..."

But she had already exerted her easy strength and wrenched free from Jacob's grip, dancing to stand beside Jasper, who instantly stopped growling when she reached for his hand in reassurance.

"I don't understand..." Jacob began, looking down at his empty hands, disbelieving.

"_Big _surprise." Rosalie snorted.

"Don't, Rose..." Bella's small voice cut in, and it was so full of helpless pleading that Jacob whirled around to look at her.

Esme still had her cradled in her arms, but her eyes weren't focused on anything, just staring off into the distance...

Jacob wondered for a moment why it wasn't Edward comforting her. The thought had Edward stiffening by Jacob's side.

"No! This is ridiculous..." Rosalie snapped. "None of this has anything to do with the _dog_! This concerns the _family_."

"She is my family!" Jacob suddenly bellowed, and there was silence.

Jacob had turned on Rosalie, but as a cold hand rested on his shoulder he slowly turned to be staring into Bella's impossibly sad eyes as they looked up at him.

She raised her hands to cup his face.

"Jacob..." she said his name as though it were a question. Like she was asking something of him...?

She opened her mouth, about to say more, when Alice let out a sudden gasp.

She was doubled over, Jasper kneeling beside her shrunken, crumpled form, his features creased in panic.

Edward let out a deep, guttural growl as Alice closed her eyes and shared her visions with him.

Bella's hands dropped from Jacob's face, but her eyes still held his...

"Alice?" Bella asked when she heard her sister-in-law's gasping had stopped.

"They have her." Edward replied on Alice's behalf.

"Who is _'they'_...?" Jacob asked in a voice strained between anger and pain.

"Jacob..." Bella began again, "...let me explain on the way." she ended, rather lamely.

On the way to where? Jacob wondered, but Edward cut in.

"Italy." Edward murmured, knowing the effect that word would have on Jacob.

A large ripping sound could be heard as Jacob shifted. His mind, fogged by suspicion and pain a moment ago, had become suddenly clear. _They _had her. _Italy. _The Volturi. How long had Alice known that this was Renesmee's fate? Did they think he would not help? Did they really think he would not lay down his life for her...?

They had her.

She was his.

He would get her back.

He let out a deep, rumbling howl. It was not a call to arms, it was not meant for his pack... it was meant for her. Renesmee.

_I am coming. _He said, as he let rip with another trembling howl, _I will find you_.


	10. Chapter 10

The fury echoed in his mind.

An endless black rage pulsated through his body and he ground his teeth hard together, lest he give in to the impulse to sink his teeth into one of the vampires...

In only a few minutes, Quil, Embry, Seth, Jared, Paul and Leah came leaping out of the clearing before the Cullen house to stand before him.

Panting, with their tongues lolling out, their eyes were glinting with terror as they looked upon their Alpha and heard the rampaging thoughts that had him frothing at the mouth, appearing rabid...

The pack needed no explanation as they stood in a rough semi-circle around the Cullens' front porch, looking up at Jacob's massive russet form... they had heard everything.

_We go with you!_

Jacob, his own thoughts clouded by fury and tinged with impatience, hadn't been sure whose internal monologue this had been.

_No!_ he had replied to all of them, the Alpha-boom translating to his thoughts.

_We can't let you leave on some suicide mission... _Embry's voice had a hint of authority, but it was nothing compared to Jacob's thunderous reply.

_You will obey me!_ his mind roared, and out of the corner of his eye he thought he even saw Edward flinch slightly.

_Jacob... _Leah hedged, and he answered her by letting out a deep, warning growl.

_Woah, woah, woah!_ Leah had backed up, but not taken her eyes from Jacob, _Hear me out, Jake. You owe me that much!_ she'd insisted.

Jacob answered with silence.

_Take me, only me. _She began, and Seth howled beside her.

She responded by turning her great furry head to the side and snapping her jaw once to quieten him, and then turned back to Jacob's narrowed eyes.

_I get it. You don't want to risk all of us... that's very noble and martyr-like of you, Captain. _She had spat the final word out, and Jacob could hardly miss the sarcasm and resentment.

_...But you are suggesting going into a vampire town, crawling with God-knows how many ancient and gifted vampires..._Seth howled again, and this time Jacob snapped at him so that he could concentrate on Leah's thought.

_...And you are going into this enemy territory with nothing but more bloodsuckers as your back-up? S_he could hardly hide the disdain in her thoughts.

The pack had warmed to the Cullens, eventually. Thanks in part to Jacob's warming to Renesmee, which had some residual subconscious effect on everyone else. But Leah, for whatever reason, still occasionally referred to them as 'bloodsuckers' and struggled to keep her feelings of disdain toward them in check. Jacob had even, on occasion, had to throw a warning growl her way when she hadn't been able to keep her thoughts and feelings about Renesmee quiet... As with everyone's imprint, the men of Jacob's pack had accepted Renesmee when they understood what she meant to him. Even Embry and Seth, who still hadn't imprinted, had some small understanding of his feelings, if only because he couldn't help sharing them.

Maybe it was because she was female, but Leah had never harbored anything but hatred toward Renesmee. More likely though, Jacob understood, it was Leah's hatred of vampires in general... and her hatred was not necessarily some deep-seeded wolf instinct. She held them responsible for what she was, and what she could never be. Being the only female werewolf in existence, meant she could never be a mother.

Jacob had often thought, much to Leah's chargrin, that she and Rosalie had a lot in common...

_Take me with you. _Leah broke in, stubbornness ringing in Jacob's head.

_No! _he replied, evenly, and the undercurrent of worry radiating from Seth subsided slightly.

_I'm your right-hand woman, Jake. _Leah bit out, _You'll feel better knowing someone is there who has your safety in mind... _

In the recesses of his now blackened thoughts, Jacob realized it could only help to have another wolf on their side.

Leah heard this thought and pressed her point.

_Two wolves are better than one, _she murmured.

Against his better judgement, Jacob gave the smallest of nods, and Leah stepped forward out of the semi-circle, Seth lifting a foot to follow.

_No!_ Jacob roared, and Seth, tail between his legs, backed up.

Leah shifted, and remained crouched on the ground while Esme hurried out to throw a blanket over her and bustle her inside.

_Jake... _Quil began, but was silenced with a menacing growl from his Alpha.

_The rest of you **stay here!** _Jacob ordered, and each wolf silently obeyed.

Before shifting back Jacob had reached out a thought to Embry, and only Embry.

_If I don't come back_... Jacob had ventured.

Embry gave a small, awkward wolf-nod, and nothing more needed to be said.

Jacob shifted back and walked inside the Cullen house to raid Emmett's wardrobe...

A few minutes later, Jacob, Leah and the Cullens had piled into Emmett's Hummer, with the pack following the giant black beast of a car down the driveway.

Jacob turned as they drove away from the large white house, and saw that the pack he left behind had formed a solemn row along the road... and soon they were merely a line on the horizon, and then nothing.

* * *

Since only four seats were available at the last minute, Edward, Jasper, Emett and Jacob had to take the first flight out. Carlisle and the women would take a later flight, and meet them in Rome only four hours behind.

On the way to the airport Alice had had a vision of Jasper, cramped in what was essentially a metal cage in the sky, teased by the pulsating blood of fellow passengers, some of whom had the twinge of deep-seeded fear in their scent...

They couldn't risk Jasper losing a hold of himself, so Edward had been sent along to monitor his thoughts while Emmett and Jacob made for brute strength, if needs be.

Jacob looked at the seat in front of him, where the crown of Jasper's blond head could be seen. How long had he been a 'vegeterian' now, and he still couldn't control himself?

It was a cynical thought that had Edward throwing him a glare from where he sat beside him.

They had just become air-borne and Jacob shifted restlessly as he thought over the last few hours, and the hours that lay ahead...

Jacob was pulled out of his thoughts by Edward's head turning quickly to watch Jasper's blond crown. A thought was passing through his mind that Edward had taken alarm at.

Jacob wondered what exactly Edward expected him to do if Jasper's blood-lust became too much? Distract the other passengers by turning into a wolf, mid-air?

"Not exactly what I had in mind." Edward whispered beside him. And then his shoulders slumped slightly, clearly Jasper's thought had passed...

Jacob huffed and shifted in his seat again as a new recollection hit him. The Cullen families explanation of recent, and not so recent events, leading up to Renesmee's capture.

A darkness covered his thoughts then. A black rage. If one of those Volturi bloodsuckers so much as touched one hair on her head... so help him God, they would _pay_!

Jacob's thoughts submerged into the darkness. They would pay anyway, he mused. Each and every one of those depraved Volturi vampires would burn for having ever even considered doing _that _to Renesmee...

With this thought came the recollection of conversation with the Cullens... and a detailed description of what Edward knew the Volturi had planned for Renesmee...

"He is trying hard not to influence the feelings of the others passengers." Edward broke in, no doubt hearing the surge of fury in Jacob's mind.

Edward nodded toward Jasper when Jacob had flashed him an annoyed glare for the interruption.

"...If he lulls those around him into a false-sense of calm, then his hunting instincts will no doubt kick in..." Edward finished. Jacob wondered why he was saying this, and then realized it was as much for his benefit as Jasper's. Jacob needed to know that Jasper couldn't control him if the rage inside got too much and triggered his shift. And Jasper needed to know that Edward was reading his thoughts, and saw every plan of action that crossed his mind...

The blond crown in front of Jacob nodded with silent understanding meant for Edward.

But the thoughts were already swirling around in Jacob's mind. The Volturi. Aro... what they intended for Renesmee... _breed_, as Edward had put it.

And then Jacob's mind was racing ahead, thinking of the sense of calm he would feel watching those vampires burn...

Edward flinched beside him, and Jacob realized that he was being very vocal in his descriptions.

For an instant he thought to apologize, but then his thoughts turned on Edward, not for the first time today. Not for the first time since hearing about what had silently transpired in that field eight years ago...

Edward heard the angry accusation in Jacob's head... He should have provoked a fight with Aro and his guard the second he'd heard the old vampires intentions for Renesmee.

"That regret haunts me now, more than ever." Edward whispered.

"If you had, none of this would be happening now." Jacob murmured, barely suppressing his disgust.

Edward shook his head. "Maybe," he agreed, "or maybe none of us would be alive right now to have to worry about it".

Jacob was still thinking otherwise.

"I can look back on that confrontation now and understand that it was selfishness that stopped me from provoking a fight..."

Jacob silently questioned his words, and Edward continued.

"I was a newly wed. Bella and I were beginning our eternity together."

_And what about your daughter? _Jacob accused silently.

Edward nodded. "I had been a father for only a month... I loved her then, of course. But enough to risk Bella's life? My families?..."

_So much for unconditional love, _Jacob mused vehemently.

Edward turned on him then, his eyes glowing black with fury. But he did not yell, he kept his voice low and menacing; "You cannot possibly begin to understand the love I have for my daughter. You will not understand..."

Edward stopped then, at hearing Jacob's silent retaliation.

_Until I am a father myself? _Jacob had said silently, and then he had thought of Renesmee. Of him and Renesmee...

"Precisely." Edward murmured, fury gone.

Jacob's wasn't though. He kept thinking back on that day in the baseball field... when the odds were in their favor.

He knew that what lay ahead was a suicide mission, as Leah had put it. For a moment he felt a small stab of pride thinking of Leah... a suicide mission, and she had still insisted on coming.

But what they were getting themselves into now... Jacob pushed the idea of death from his mind. He wasn't afraid, not for himself. He was scared, no... _terrified_ by the thought of what his, and the Cullen's death, would mean for Renesmee.

_Breed. _The word lit across his thoughts, leaving fury in their wake.


	11. Chapter 11

"_Your hands are so big..." she lifted it slowly to inspect, and he humored her by going limp at the wrist._

_She brought the back of his hand to her lips and kissed it quickly, before placing her hand flat against his, palm to palm. He gave a gentle squeeze of his hand and she felt his chest rise and fall with gentle laughter._

_She was laying on his chest, and had to move her head to peer up at him, his other hand was wrapped around her shoulders and pressed to her back, steadying her._

_She quirked an eyebrow at his smiling face as he continued to emit a rumbling chuckle._

"_All the better to grope you with, my dear..." he murmured, and he let out a fresh peel of laughter._

_She rolled her eyes and brought her head back down, so that her cheek was flat against his chest. She closed her eyes and smiled, feeling the echo of his laughter and enjoying the feel of his warmth through the thin shirt he was wearing._

"_Your feet are so big..." Renesmee encouraged._

_Jacob let the laughter die down to a breathy huff before he replied. "All the better to chase you..."_

"_And your teeth are so big..." Renesmee murmured._

"_All the better to eat you with, my dear..." Jacob replied, letting out one last breathy rasp of laughter._

_Renesmee sat up in a flash, but kept holding on to Jacob's hand. _

_She looked down at him as he lay flat, his head in the shade of the tree they were under, a small twig caught in his mattered black hair._

_He was looking up at her, one eyebrow raised curiously._

_He let her hand wriggle free from his grasp as she slowly lowered herself down again, her lips softly kissing his neck, at the point of pulse._

"_I don't think so..." she whispered, smiling as she felt his goosebumps._

"_Oh no?" He whispered back, a little breathless, his other hand was still pressing against the small of her back. _

_She shook her head and kept kissing, her lips a little harder against his skin now._

"_Nope..." she murmured sweetly, before sinking her teeth gently into his neck._

_He let out a strangled moan, and pushed harder on her back, encouraging._

"_I do all the biting in this relationship, got it?" she set her teeth against his neck once more, enjoying the salty sweet taste of him._

"_Whatever you say, Little Red..." he murmured, before turning his face to hers so that lips were on lips..._

* * *

A low chuckle came from somewhere far away.

Suddenly the images before her slowed down and then stopped all together.

No Forks woods. No Jacob. Nothing... just a memory, which left a bitter taste in her mouth as it faded into black.

The chuckling continued.

She tried to concentrate on the sound, but became distracted by the louder noise of engines.

Where was she?

What happened?

_Demetri._

"Right here, sweetheart."

Her body jerked with the noise, deep and resonating in her mind.

She was still seeing black. But she could hear the engines, had heard that voice...

"Alec..." the same deep voice ordered.

Suddenly a shard of light broke in, and Renesmee was blinking against the intrusion.

She started gulping in great lungful's of air while also looking around wildly.

A cabin.

An aeroplane.

Too small for a plane... a jet?

She was sitting down on a leather chair, Demetri in front of her, legs crossed and head to one side, studying her.

She wanted to speak. She wanted to _scream _but she was too busy enjoying the feel of her lungs taking in air...

"I've heard it's a bit like that..." Demetri mused, his black eyes still intent on her. "Being under Alec's anesthesia..." Demetri clarified, "Like being under-water, isn't it? As though you've been sunk just below the surface... and then the swells ebb a little and you break through..." his eyes drifted to a point behind her, nodding slightly.

Yes. That's exactly what it had been like. Drowning. Black all around... and when she had succumbed to the black, let it pull her down into unconsciousness... then, she had dreamt.

Demetri gave the smallest of nods, still looking just behind Renesmee. He was handsome, she had realized that before. He had short-cropped brown hair, the color of cinnamon. A perfectly chisel cut jaw and she could see the swell of muscle even in the light gray cashmere sweater he was wearing. She guessed him to look around twenty years old, but wondered how old he _really_ was...

"Nearly your father's age..." he murmured, eyes suddenly darting back to her.

She had stopped gasping for air. Now she sat slumped and breathing low, enjoying the surface once again.

Realizing her gasping had subsided she took a moment to once again survey her surroundings. Definitely a jet. A private jet, for all it's look of luxury. She wearily noticed a drinks bar toward the back... plush brown leather single seats. A plasma TV.

But where were they going?

Fear rang in her head. So relieved to have broken through the surface she had delayed reactions... very much as though her body were slow-moving and sore, aching from the struggle of staying afloat.

Where were they taking her?

"Home..." Demetri murmured, a small smile curving his lips. He was clearly amused by her ability.

Why?

"All in good time, sweetheart." he drawled, and she flinched at his honey-tones.

His eyes had moved back to the point behind her, and she momentarily wondered what he was staring at...

Then she felt a cold hand on her shoulder.

She didn't need to look up. She knew who it was, and her mouth began moving again, trying to get as much air into her again before...

"Not long now." Alec's voice was not as low as Demetri's. Alec's was soft, lulling... but for all of that it sent a cold chill through her body.

_Please, don't..._ she reached the thought out, and the hand on her shoulder squeezed.

"Just a bit longer..." the voice soothed, "...don't fight it, it's easier." he added before the black pulled Renesmee back down. Down. Down. Down... she struggled for a moment, and then the black gave one final tug and she was alone.

Floating.

Waiting.

Drowning.

It was all the same.

Black.

* * *

_They lifted her and she rocked back and forth for a moment._

_Jasper and Emmett each held one of her outstretched hands, lifting her off the ground and swinging her like a pendulum..._

_She let rip with a chorus of giggles and looked to Jasper, who was smiling down at her._

"_Again!" she ordered, and Emmett huffed in mock-indignation. _

"_Yes ma'am!" he chimed, shaking his head as he laughed. _

_They raised her again and swung as they walked along..._

* * *

"_There."_

_Rosalie's chin came to rest lightly on Renesmee's shoulder as both faces looked into the mirror._

"_Lovely." Rosalie whispered, and then turned her head to softly kiss Renesmee's cheek. _

_Rosalie straightened, but kept a hand resting lightly on Renesmee's shoulder while the other ran fingers lightly through the tangle of curls now arranged with flowers pinned randomly._

_Rosalie was looking intently at her, with a smile on her lips._

_Renesmee kept looking in the mirror, not at herself, but at her aunt Rose._

* * *

"_Alice..."_

"_Hmm?"_

"_Would you do something for me?"_

"_Hmm?"_

"_Can I bring you in for show and tell tomorrow?" _

_A symphony of giggles erupted. _

"_Can I?" Renesmee pushed._

_Alice bent down and gathered her up in her arms so that she could look levelly into her face._

"_Can I?" Renesmee asked again, "You're way better than anything the other kids have ever brought in..." she pushed, and Alice smiled._

"_I don't think so, kiddo." she said, still smiling. _

"_But why?" Renesmee pouted._

_Alice sighed, and quickly kissed her niece's cheek. _

"_You could come in and tell people who they're going to marry and if they win the lottery..." Renesmee huffed._

_Alice shook her head a little, but kept smiling._

"_Most people don't like spoilers, Ness." she murmured._

* * *

Cold.

Light.

Cold.

Renesmee breathed and felt her body quiver with relief.

Cold.

Her eyes slowly fluttered open, and for a moment everything was too dark and she thought she had woken up still under water...

"Just breathe..." something soft whispered into her ear and she did as she was told.

Her eyes blinked and she realized it was not black, just dark. Everything was lit with candles, burning a low buttery glow over everything.

She blinked again and realized she was lying down, staring up at a ceiling. At a high stone ceiling... no wonder she was cold.

She moved her head and let out an involuntary gasp.

Alec. His face was so like Jane's... cherubic. Beautiful bowed lips. Round, inviting face framed by small golden curls...

His hand was on her shoulder, cold and heavy.

She wanted to flinch, to move away from his cold touch, but her body still felt heavy from the struggle of staying afloat...

"Tell the master..." Alec ordered to someone standing in the room, but his eyes did not leave Renesmee's.

His eyes. Golden honey. Beautiful.

"Wh-what...?" she stammered, surprised by the rasp in her voice.

His hand squeezed and she stopped trying to get the words out.

"It takes a while to wear off..." he murmured, and she thought he looked a little embarrassed at the mention of his poisonous ability. "You've been asleep for a couple of days now."

A couple of _days_? The realization struck a chord of fear.

What if they didn't know?

What if they had no idea where she was...?

What if they weren't looking for her?

Mama. Papa. Carlisle. Esme. Alice. Jasper. Emmett. Rosalie. Jacob.

Jacob.

Jacob.

Her eyes stung with the threat of tears.

Before she could give into the fear and the tears though, Alec's hand jerked away and he was standing, turned toward the door.

Renesmee struggled to sit up then, and found her body was easing with wakefulness. Not so sore anymore, she propped herself against the big headboard of the large bed she was laid on, and looked around.

The room was medieval. Thick red velvet drapes hung on the windows. The walls were a dark grey stone, giant canvas paintings and tapestries hung on every wall. Large candles were placed all around the room.

Her eyes, taking in all around her, came to the door. A thick wooden door with intricate metal decorations. The handle turned.

Aro looked much the same. Tall, old and with skin like cheesecloth.

He wore all black. A black suit, shirt, leather shoes... he was inky black all over.

He smiled, and Renesmee felt her blood turn cold.

"My dear..." he murmured, stepping into the room.

Alec cast one last glance down at her and then strode across the room, walking through and closing the door behind him, leaving Renesmee and Aro alone.

Renesmee drew her legs up and wrapped her arms around her knees. A slight shiver ran from head to toe as Aro continued to look at her, a puzzled expression lighting his features.

"Are you afraid of me?" he whispered.

She shook again at hearing his voice. Cold and articulate but with a menacing edge she could not quite put her finger on.

A chill racked her body once again and she cast her eyes down. Somebody had undressed her. She shivered again. She was wearing a pale blue silk night-dress, V-shaped and sleeveless, cutting off just above her knees.

She quickly kicked her legs out in front of her and dragged the thick embroidered blanket on top of herself, bringing it up to her stomach.

"Sulpicia, my wife, thought it best to change you out of those filthy clothes you arrived in..." Aro explained.

"Where am I?" she croaked.

Aro smiled. "Voltura." he answered simply.

"Why am I here? Why did you take me?..." Renesmee suddenly burst, and she felt the tears break.

Aro glided forward, and before she had a chance to move, he was sitting on the edge of the bed, his cold hands clasping her own and his face peering deep... seeing more than just her features.

He closed his eyes and tightened his grip as she struggled to get free.

"So much has happened since we last met..." he murmured.

"Since you came to kill me, you mean?" she interjected, hoping he could discern her bitter tone.

"How foolish I was..." Aro murmured, eyes still closed as he absorbed.

One of his eyes opened to peer at her, "To think of what I almost destroyed..." he finished, closing his eyes once more.

"Why am I here?" Renesmee asked again, still trying to yank her hands away.

In a moment Aro released them, and she fell slightly against the headboard, surprised by his letting go.

"All in good time, my dear..."

She pushed off the head-board, throwing the blanket off and leaping from the bed she bolted for the door. Not really thinking it would be unlocked, but too scared to not at least try.

She turned her back on the solid door and saw that Aro had not moved from where he sat on the edge of the bed, one eyebrow quirked in amusement.

She shook her head, fighting back a fresh wave of tears.

"Renesmee..." he whispered.

She closed her eyes, trying to force the tears back, but when she opened them Aro was standing in front of her... close enough that she felt his cold breath on her flushed face.

"Renesmee..." he whispered again.

_Mother._

Her eyes widened at the word, though she did not know where it came from. Aro had not spoken.

"Wh-what?" she murmured.

"You could be great..." Aro spoke softly, but there was a chill to his words.

_Mother._

This time she could not be sure if he had said the word out loud or not.

She pushed the word from her mind.

"Great?" she whispered back.

Aro smiled.

He turned and glided to the other side of the room, Renesmee let out a sigh of relief, but then he was back and holding out a goblet to her.

She took it, but closed her eyes when she realized it was blood. Human blood.

He gave a slight shrug of his shoulders and took the goblet back, swapping it with another he had in his other hand, this one full of red wine.

She sipped hesitantly, keeping her eyes on him as he casually strolled around the room, eyeing the canvas paintings and tapestries that hung on every wall.

"Ironic, I think." he finally spoke.

"Excuse me?" Renesmee stopped drinking. She hadn't realized how thirsty she was. Thirsty and hungry, interchangeable feelings for her, really. The wine was fruity and thick and felt good going down her throat.

"Blood." he said simply, not looking at her as he continued to peer closely at one of the hanging tapestries on the far wall.

When she said nothing, Aro continued.

"Blood is the very essence of our being, for our kind, blood is everything..."

"And that's ironic?" Renesmee asked.

Aro nodded absentmindedly. "It is, because we always take, but can never pass it on..."

"What?" becoming thoroughly fed-up with the conversation, Renesmee bit the word out and Aro turned then, to eye her speculatively.

"Poison is our link to one another. We are transformed with a bite, the poison leeks into the blood and turns us... but there the link ends. Blood no longer courses through our veins, we only take blood to fill us with what we no longer have, but crave all the same..."

Aro actually laughed then. A raspy, strangled laugh, but a laugh nonetheless that had the hairs standing up on the back of Renesmee's neck.

"Ironic, that blood consumes us but at the same time is so not apart of us..." His eyes trained on hers, they were a dull yellow, not beautiful but terrifying. "Except for you and your kind."

"Me?" she breathed.

Aro nodded. "You, Nahuel and his sisters... half of us, and yet so much more..."

An image of Nahuel flashed in Renesmee's mind, and Aro's smile broadened.

"For you, blood is linked. It runs, it can be passed on... so much more..." Aro murmured.

To Renesmee his words were nothing more than ramblings. Was it Alec's residual anesthesia clouding her mind or was Aro really just stark raving mad?

"Not mad, I shouldn't think..." Aro interrupted her thoughts, and answered her silent question.

He glided forward then, to stand close to her once more, close enough that she could see the papery fineness of his white skin.

"Renesmee, you could be great. Blood is linked, for you... it passes on, it is a life force as well as temptation..."

Ramblings, Renesmee mused once more.

Aro shook his head.

"Don't you see? You could be great..."

_Mother._

She heard it that time, definitely. Ringing clear. It was his voice? But he had not spoken? What then...?

"Mother?" she said the word out loud, rolling it on her tongue, testing it.

Aro's eyes widened momentarily, and then his mouth set in a firm line.

"You could be great..." he murmured again.

Great. Mother.

Ramblings.

Blood. Linked by blood...

Her flutter heart skipped a beat, or two.

She dropped the goblet she forgot she was still holding and it shattered on the stone floor. The wine looked like spilled blood.

Her hands clenched, unclenched and then began to shake as a cold sweat broke out across her forehead.

An uneasy breath escaped her tremblings lips.

Mother?

"No..." she shook her head slowly, looking up into Aro's staring face with a cold clarity...

She moved backward, but felt the door solid and cold agaisnt her back.

"_NO_!" she screamed.

"No, no, no, NO!" she words rang in her head and all around but she felt the cold fear grip her heart and knew it was useless.

"Alec..." Aro's voice was completely level. Totally calm.

He gripped her by the shoulders and yanked her forward, and she heard the heavy door creak open.

She fell against Aro's chest as the black pulled her down again.

This time she went easily. Quietly, even. Anything was better than the cold clarity of... mother.

* * *

"_Goodnight, my love."_

_Bella's lips brushed against Renesmee's temple and she tucked the blanket under her chin._

_A moment or two passed, Renesmee could feel sleep pulling her under but her parent's voices anchored her for a little bit longer..._

_They were standing over here, thinking she was already asleep._

"_Do you miss it?" her father's voice, strong and beautiful._

"_Not so much..." her mother's voice, a sweet serenade._

_A cool hand gently brushed away a stray curl that lay on her cheek, and Renesmee gave a small murmur of comfort at the touch. _

"_I would rather watch her sleep than dream myself" her mother whispered. "I think watching her sleep is better than any dream I ever had...even the ones about you." she added with a quietly playful laugh._

_Her father let out a breathy laugh of his own. "Sleep that knits up the ravelled sleave of care The death of each day's life, sore labour's bath. Balm of hurt minds, great nature's second course, Chief nourisher in life's feast..." his voice trailed off as he and her mother left the room, the door closing softly behind them._

_And then Renesmee slept, the soft sounds of her parents conversation drifting in and out of her dreams..._


	12. Chapter 12

When she woke, Renesmee wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep.

Sleep brought visions of home. Memories of her childhood, not so long ago, and the sleep induced comfort of love and safety. Sleeping also brought Jacob to her.

"Urghh..." she groaned, heaving herself to a sitting position.

She was still in the same room as the night before, but the heavy velvet drapes were pulled back, and the room filled with dull Autumn light.

"Good morning."

Renesmee turned her head and saw that a woman was staring at her from the corner of the room, where she sat on a long-backed antique chair.

The woman rose and took a step forward, gently biting her red bottom lip.

She was wearing a strange gown. Strange, because it looked like something out of the seventeenth century. Corseted and billowing about the waist, it was made from a fine cotton material and had straight arms. It was a deep green, and looked brilliant for all it's absurdity in the 21st century.

She was tall, Renesmee would only meet her chest if she stood in front of her. She had strawberry red hair that was pulled back in a severe bun, leaving her oval face entirely open to Renesmee's scrutiny.

She did not recognize her.

"Fascinating." she woman remarked.

She looked to have been frozen in the age of thirty or so... but it was hard to tell with that smooth oval face of perfection.

Renesmee sent a silent query out and the woman's thin red eyebrows shot up.

"Remarkable!" she murmured in equally fascinated tones.

Renesmee shifted uncomfortably as the woman continued to stare, and then all at once the red-head sensed her growing nervousness and let a broad smile curve her lips.

"I must apologize..." she began, "It is only..."

She stepped quickly and came to the opposite side of the large bed, peering down curiously at Renesmee.

"...Your gift is truly..." she thought for a moment, and then shrugged, "fascinating!" she said again.

Renesmee opened her mouth, and then closed it, not knowing how to answer.

"I am being so rude." the woman murmured in response to Renesmee's impersonation of a fish. "My name is Chelsea." and the smile widened.

Chelsea. The vampire in Aro's collection who could change emotional bonds.

Chelsea let out a breathy laugh and nodded slightly, "Yes, that is my gift."

Renesmee shook her head.

All of Alec's anesthesia had her head weary, her control over her powers was slack. She had to start focusing, she didn't want these vampires walking freely through her mind.

"I can imagine it would be an intrusion." Chelsea offered, and Renesmee shot her a threatening glare.

She would start controling her thoughts as of... _now_!

Chelsea blinked but continued to smile, "Did it work?" she asked, and Renesmee felt a hot flush of embarrassment rise up her neck.

"Apparently not..." she mumbled, looking down.

She was still in the silk nightgown from last night.

The memory had bile rising in her throat, and in a flash cool hands were on her back, pressing her neck down.

"Head between your legs, I hear that helps..." Chelsea was cooing.

Renesmee swatted her away and composed herself, swallowing the bile.

"But you're right, Sulpicia sent me along, to give you a change of clothes..." Chelsea flitted across to the other side of the room. She pulled back one of the tapestries that was hanging on the wall to reveal a closet door behind. She opened it and pulled out a garment bag.

Renesmee's eyes widened at the black bag, and she took in Chelsea's elaborate dress once again. She silently wondered in which century this red-headed vampire had been turned.

Chelsea let out a peel of laughter and turned around, the garment bag hanging over her arm. She looked down at herself and then back at Renesmee.

"A few hundred years ago..." she began, good naturedly, she walked toward the bed again, "...It's not so much nostalgia for my past, rather that I am a fan of Anne Rice." she shrugged and lay the bag on the bed, a few inches from Renesmee who eyed it with disdain.

"The family would very much like it if you would join them for breakfast." Chelsea said, eyeing the garment bag that Renesmee made no move to touch.

"Would they?" Renesmee asked sarcastically. "And I would very much like to go home!" she snapped.

Chelsea shook her head a little.

"I know you would." She whispered and then cast her eyes down, "I watched your dreams..."

A blush broke out on Renesmee's cheeks.

She would start cotroling her thoughts as of... _now_!

* * *

The dress inside the black garment bag was, much to Renesmee's relief, modern. It was black and cut just below the knee, with quarter sleeves. It was made of light cotton and cut in a V-shape, decorated with small red lace trim around the neck. Sulpicia had also supplied a pair of red tights, and black ballet flats. Despite being modern and having a designer label, the whole look was a little babyish for Renesmee's taste.

Once dressed, Chelsea had taken Renesmee through endless corridors and passages, all looking much alike. Tapestries hung everywhere, the grey stone and high ceilings had goosebumps breaking out on Renesmee's arms as a chill seemed to seep into every nook and crevice.

She had no time to take in her surroundings or peer for long through the stained-glass windows, Chelsea was gliding along, and Renesmee was desperate to keep up. She did not want to meet the Volturi family, but she likewise did not want to get lost in this labyrinth of a castle.

They did not pass anyone as they walked through the corridors, and Renesmee wondered where the large Volturi guard was. Did Aro keep them in the basement? Did castles have basements, or was it dungeons? The thought had her shivering, and it was nothing to do with the cold.

Chelsea suddenly stoppped and Renesmee nearly smacked into the woman's back, but instead tripped up in the billowing green skirts.

Chelsea heaved her to a standing position once again, and pushed her through a door.

"Oh." Renesmee breathed, looking up.

It was like the inside of a cathedral. A huge expanse and extremely beautiful in all its Gothic splendor.

Steeple, rising ceilings, intricately carved. Still made of grey stone, but with hanging chandeliers that radiated a buttery glow. There were about ten chandeliers, all a different design, some made of crystal and others metal. All grandiose, with outstretched tendrils, some holding candles and others electric.

There was only one tapestry in this room, but it was so large that it snaked around three walls. There was a huge heavy red rug in the middle of the room, and a grand fireplace toward the back. Near the fireplace was a long wooden table, and tall, uncomfortable looking wooden chairs. The place was empty.

"They'll just be a minute." Chelsea encouraged, pushing slightly on Renesmee's back, encouraging her further into the large room.

Thinking only of warmth, Renesmee walked hurredly toward the fire and stretched her arms out toward the crackling heat.

She heard the door close and then she was alone.

"Think, think, think..." Renesmee murmured to herself.

Surely her family knew where she was. Even if it had been two days, and even though she was a blind spot for Alice... they had to know where she was.

The memory of the conversation with Aro last night had her shivering despite the heat before her. Blood link. What she was. Half of them, but more.

And that strange unspoken 'mother'.

She wondered why her. Why not one of Nahuel's sisters? But then again... maybe they had stolen them away already? Maybe they, like her, were tucked up somewhere in another part of the castle...

Nahuel's sisters were like her. Half human. They too could give birth to...

The thought had her quivering and breathing hard.

What was Aro's plan? He couldn't think that she would volunteer herself... she shivered at the thought of Aro's long slender fingers and the memory of Alec's anesthesia. No, they wouldn't need her consent.

But they'd had so many chances already. She had been here for at least two days, unconscious for most of it. She knew that nothing had happened to her. She would have known, would have felt it. Vampires were not gentle, even in their lovemaking.

She wouldn't really have any say in the matter though, if they did mean to force her. And what if they didn't need to _force _her at all? Only manipulate her... she thought of Chelsea. Was the red-headed Anne Rice fan already exerting her powers?

Renesmee conjured the image of her parents in her mind.

Her heart clenched with the memory of them and she blinked back tears.

Still love there, at least. But for how long?

Chelsea could apparently break bonds, but could she also enforce them?

Renesmee thought of Alec's sweet round face and found the fear she had of him was not quite so strong as two days ago.

Was Chelsea already at work on her then?

_Two heartbeats._

Renesmee whirled around to find Marcus staring at her. He stood by the closed door. She had not heard him come in.

He was tall, like Aro, with the same translucent skin. He had brown hair where Aro had white, and was not as hunched as his brother. His face was not nearly as menacing either, in fact his expression was merely bored.

"Good morning, Miss. Cullen." he murmured, and then he slowly walked toward the table, taking a seat opposite to the fire.

_Two heartbeats._

It was his voice. Marcus's bored drawl, to be sure. But his lips were firmly set.

"I am Marcus. We have met before, though I doubt you would remember..." he began, and Renesmee threw him the mental picture she had of the baseball field.

"Aha," he murmured, still bored, "I am mistaken." and he nodded to her.

The great door opened once more and two women entered the great hall.

"May I present my brother's wives, Sulpicia and Athenodora." Marcus mumbled as the women approached.

Each bowed in turn, and then pulled chairs out on either side of Marcus. They lowered their heads, looking into laps instead of meeting Renesmee's curious gaze.

They were sisters. Both tall and graceful, with the hard white marble skin of most vampires. They both had jet-black hair and slanted cat eyes. But Sulpicia had curved hips where Athenodora was straight up and down. Both were beautiful, as Renesmee had come to expect from vampires.

"And, my brother's, whom you know..." Marcus spoke just as the door opened.

Aro glided in, accompanied by a stocky vampire with dull brown hair and a firm scowl on his face. Caius was slightly shorter than both his brothers, but had twice their menace.

The women and Marcus all stood as Aro and Caius approached, each taking a seat at either end of the long table.

Renesmee stood motionless by the fire, all together too overcome to move an inch.

Aro bowed his head, whispered something very softly and quickly and then everyone was seated, and Aro was looking curiously at Renesmee who still stood with her hands outstretched toward the fire's heat.

"If you would be so kind, my dear..." Aro inclined his head toward the one chair placed before the fire, and Renesmee clumsily stumbled forward, scraped it out, and plonked down on the hard wood.

Sulpicia suddenly clapped her hands in three loud beats and the wide doors opened once more.

Two girls who looked to be about seventeen entered, each carrying a large platter of something steaming.

They were human, Renesmee could smell.

They were also twins, and looked like gypsies. They were dressed in long white sleeveless dresses that looked brilliant against their olive skin. Their black hair was pulled back in loose pony-tails that revealed large silver hoops through each ear. They had bare feet, and Renesmee shivered at the thought of the cold stones.

Each girl walked opposite sides of the table to come and stand behind Renesmee.

One put a plate of pancakes before her, the other a plate of eggs and bacon.

And then they stood back, to stand on either side of the wide fireplace.

Five pairs of eyes stared at Renesmee as she stared down at the food.

And then heat began to creep up her neck and fan out to her cheeks. All at once she was overcome with a blind fury.

She slowly stood, reached down for the plate of pancakes, and in one heaving motion threw it behind Marcus and the wives. The plate thudded on the rug and the pancakes flew so as to land at random spots and look like golden puddles on the red.

She reached down and got two hands on the other plate, when an icy grip on one of her wrists had her turning her head to meet a sharp freezing slap across her cheek that sent her sprawling on the floor beside her chair.

"Stop!" Aro's voice came in high and clear above the ringing in Renesmee's ears.

She opened her eyes to see Caius looming over her, one arm raised back-handed.

"Don't do that, if you please..." Aro spoke again to his brother.

Caius's mouth twitched in agitation, he sneered down at Renesmee, then turned on his heel and let out a sigh of indignation as he sat back down.

Aro's cool hands came around Renesmee's arms and lifted her, pushing her gently back into the chair.

She raised a hand to her burning cheek and felt the tears stinging her eyes as her hand pressed to the sore flesh.

"You must forgive my brother..." Marcus began, sounding bored rather than apologetic.

Renesmee threw him a baleful glare and he stopped speaking.

"No, I don't think that's it, my dear."

Renesmee turned as Aro spoke, but saw he was looking into his wife's face, and holding her hand across the table.

Aro felt Renesmee's silent query and turned to her.

"My wife wonders if you would prefer a blood treat for breakfast..."

This time, the glare was meant for Sulpicia.

Aro chuckled lightly, "I think our guest was aggravated by our casual hospitality, what with all things considered." Aro explained, turning once more to his wife.

She gave a small nod, retrieved her hand and placed it back in her lap, where her eyes were trained once more.

Aro turned back to Renesmee, and seeing that a fury still burned behind her chocolate eyes, he threw her a small smile. "Now, my dear. If you will not keep your manners in check I will have to ask Alec to sedate you once again..."

At this threat, Renesmee physically shook, and Aro let out a small sigh.

"There, I knew there would be no need to resort to physical violence..." Aro spoke to his brother this time, who huffed in reply.

Renesmee took a deep breath and tried to steady herself. It was no good. She kept shaking. And then she felt as the tears began to slide down her face. She lowered her head.

"I want to go home." she whispered.

"You know why you are here." It wasn't a question, Aro was simply stating a fact.

Renesmee nodded, still not looking up.

"You are very perceptive, my dear."

"Please..." Renesmee whispered.

She couldn't help it. An image of Nahuel's sisters flashed in her mind. Their dark perfect skin, sherry-colored eyes and long limbs.

She saw Aro shake his head out of the corner of her eye, but it was Caius who spoke.

"Why have the ordinary when there is the possibility of the extraordinary...?"

She looked up then, to meet Caius's cold stare.

"Because of what I can do?" she asked, and Caius gave the smallest of nods.

"Imagine the possibilities..." Caius mused, no longer looking at Renesmee, but staring off into the distance, imagining God knows what...

"I won't do it." She was too scared to sound determined. But she gave a small shake of her head.

"You will. Chelsea will see to that." Aro was matter of fact again, and Renesmee's shaking increased, and she felt the bile rise in her throat, intensified by the smell of bacon and eggs.

"But in any case, there seems no need to begin such..." he paused, looking for an appropriate word, "...liaisons." he finished, lewdly. "Not for a little while at least." he murmured, looking intently at Renesmee's whitened face.

The bile rose up, and the swallowed hard against it.

"Hmm..." Aro murmured.

"May I be excused?" she bit the words out, but thought formality was the best way out of the hall.

Aro cocked his head, not a little surprised by her polite question.

"If you wish." and he clicked his fingers.

The door opened and Chelsea stepped inside, waiting.

"You will be expected to dine with the family again tonight..." Aro said evenly as Renesmee slowly stood.

Family?

"Somebody with your talent and potential would not make up apart of the guard..." Marcus explained, droning.

The bile was coming again. She hurriedly stepped around the table and started shuffling toward the door.

She turned when she heard the scrape of chairs.

The two gypsy girls had stepped up onto the table and lay down, one girls head was in front of Aro, the other offered up to Caius.

"They're being turned..." Chelsea explained when they stepped into the hallway. She had seen and heard the revulsion pulsating from Renesmee.

Despite being meant as a reassuring explanation, Renesmee doubled over and proceeded to vomit in the dark hallway, underneath an intricate tapestry.

She was now considered a member of the Volturi family because of what she could provide them.

She had so many questions, her head was buzzing.

Why did Aro think it necessary to wait for his plan to come to fruition? Was Chelsea already exerting her powers on her?

And most of all, the question that burned in the back of her throat and had her doubling over for a second heave... the biggest question raking itself across her thoughts... where was her own family?


	13. Chapter 13

Jacob lifted his head and looked out at the patchwork city.

Shambled rooftops, Church steeples and open windows revealing busy lives within.

Winding, cobbled streets below, all humming with life as people walked along.

It was dusk, and the city was cast in a soft buttery glow as the Autumn sun set. Church bells rang somewhere in the distance and a fluttering wave of pigeons took flight at the disturbance...

Rome.

133 miles from Volterra.

133 miles from Renesmee.

Jacob gripped the railing, his knuckles going white.

Behind him he could hear the soft cadence of discussion going on amongst the Cullen family. He preferred not to be apart of it. He had already lost his temper too many times in the last three days...

The last time he had sat in on one of those 'tactical discussions' he had thrown a blue chaise lounge against the wall, leaving the little couch in a crushed heap and a gaping hole in the wall.

Rosalie had sneered and flown across to the other side of the room to stand toe-to-toe with Jacob; "You are not the only one who is going mad with waiting..." she had breathed, curling a lip to expose glistening teeth.

He cut her off by taking a step back and balling his fists, an action that had Emmett rising from where he sat on the large leather couch; "It sure seems that way!" Jacob had spat.

Jake shook his head against the memory, but not before recalling with perfect clarity the feel of Rosalie's sharp nails scraping down the side of his face.

The logical side of Jacob's brain told him that a little time for preparation would only help their cause. The other side of Jacob's brain, the side that was all but consumed with thoughts of Renesmee, didn't really care so much about biding time and waiting for the opportune moment.

But as the Cullens' had discussed with him on the flight over here, and over the last two days, they did have a few plans in place. Now it was just a matter of executing them...

The studio apartment in Rome was one of those plans. Esme and Carlisle had bought it eight years ago, not long after learning of the Volturi's intentions for Renesmee.

The apartment was two-storeys, with wide open rooms and a spiraling steel staircase. But it was fairly bare for all its expansive grandeur. Wooden floorboards and white-washed walls, a few pieces of antique furniture that had no cohesion but looked to have just been stored here for the sake of safe-keeping. This place had clearly never been home to the Cullen's. He thought he knew why that was – close proximity to certain vampire neighbours probably lowered the appeal of the place.

Vladimir and Stefan were the second part of the plan.

Jacob hadn't really spent much time with the two ancient vampires since they arrived at the apartment yesterday. They had mostly kept to themselves. All he knew of them was what Edward told him; They were once a part of a Romanian vampire coven, destroyed by the Volturi some 1500 years ago. Vengence was their driving motivation, it was what bought them to Renesmee's aid eight years ago, and what convinced them to come to this battle.

1500 years was a long time to hold a grudge. Jacob suspected that they were nearly as eager for the coming confrontation as he was. Nearly.

A loud crash came from behind him, and he swung around to see the double glass doors fling open and shake for a moment against Emmett's force. They slammed shut as Emmett stomped onto the balcony to stand beside Jacob.

Emmett was breathing heavy, but Jacob didn't say anything, he merely turned back to admire the view.

Apparently he wasn't the only one impatient for a fight...

Jacob blinked and suddenly it was night. An inky cloak across Rome, dotted with pin-pricks of light along the roof-tops before him. The sound of the city was still as loud as ever.

Renesmee would love Rome. He would have to bring her here one day...

The thought caught him off guard, he was suddenly breathing very heavy, and felt a wave of gratitude toward him when Emmett finally spoke.

"We leave tomorrow."

Jacob turned his head, Emmett was absorbed in the view before him.

"About time." Jacob muttered, and Emmett let out a low murmur of agreement.

Jacob looked over his shoulder, figures within the apartment were casting shadows against the lights; "Why the walk-out?" he asked, turning back to Emmett.

The large vampire shrugged, "I was pushing for tonight."

"Thanks."

Emmett turned at this, a little startled and even angry. Then he shook his head; "It's always been that way with you, huh?"

"What way?" Jacob snapped, suddenly tense.

Emmett let out a low rumble laugh, and gave another small disbelieving shake of his head. "I mean, you thinking that Renesmee is all yours... you've been that way about her since she was born." Emmett could not suppress a small snigger at this, Jacob's imprinting had elicited much the same reaction as Quil's imprint on Claire, a sort of disgusted bewilderment.

"You honestly think we are all here just to get your girl back..." Emmett finished, his hands curling around the rails the same as Jacob's were.

"I don't..." Jacob began, but he knew Emmett was a little bit right. Emmett knew it too. Hell, all the Cullen's did.

"She's our girl too." Emmett interrupted in a whisper.

"I know that." Jacob replied quickly.

Emmett turned his head, surprising Jacob with a small smile tugging on his lips, "Only when we remind you."

Jacob sighed. He was in no mood to argue with the truth.

He turned back to the city before him. "Is that why you all tried so hard?" he asked, slowly.

Emmett quirked an eyebrow and Jacob felt a wave of anger toward this sign of nonchalance.

"Me and Ness. All that stuff you told her about us not going to work out..." Jacob explained, the heat rising in his voice.

Emmett nodded, a little awkwardly. "I thought we should have just up and left when Edward told us Aro's plan. Rose and I were all for just leaving in the middle of the night..."

The anger was bubbling up now, "And to hell with me, right?" he finished Emmett's thought for him.

Emmett nodded once, cracking a slightly wider smile, "That's right."

Jacob opened his mouth, about to let his anger get the better of him, but Emmett cut him off.

"But I am not the vampire you should be talking to about this."

He had a point there, Jacob had to admit.

Edward and Bella. As much as the Cullens had shared the raising of Renesmee, as much as they all loved her... she was Edward and Bella's daughter. Decisions concerning Renesmee came down to them. It would have been Bella and Edward who had agreed to the plans they were carrying out now.

Before Jacob had a chance to say more, the glass doors opened behind them and Jacob could feel the breath of heat from within.

"Will you come back in now?"

Both vampires turned to Alice. The light framed her from behind, the hollows under her eyes were prominent and frightening. She had been trying every few hours to get a vision of Renesmee, to no avail. And since Renesmee's path was now tangled with the Volturi's, the ancient vampire families plan was also clouded to Alice.

Over the past few days the little pixie vampire would seek out Jacob, merely to be near him. His presence was a black-spot, a lulling nothingness to calm Alice's headaches.

Emeett nodded to his sister and motioned for Jacob to follow him inside.

Inside, the Cullens, Leah, Vladimir and Stefan were all collected in a rough semi-circle around Edward, the only one standing.

"Are you calm now, brother?" Edward asked, watching as Emmett resumed his seat beside Rosalie.

Emmett nodded once.

Jacob took up a chair beside Bella, both of them closest to where Edward stood.

Jacob glanced down momentarily at her, and felt that sinking feeling her appearance stirred in him. Beautiful, but broken. She did not look like any sort of Bella he could recognize. Not the clumsy sweet girl he loved once. Not even the changed vampire, radiant and glaring in her perfection, who Jacob felt a glowing appreciation toward... she had given him Renesmee, his love for Bella had both grown and diminished with the gift of her daughter.

Now she looked tired. She looked lost and lonely. Jacob thought he must look the same way...

Jacob lifted his head to Edward, noting his altered appearance also. He looked better than Bella, but only because he was buoyed by the responsibility of keeping her afloat and orchestrating his daughter's rescue mission.

"We leave tomorrow..." Edward began.

Jacob noted the small movement of Bella's body beside him. She was suddenly strung taught, ready to pounce.

"Alice still doesn't have a clear vision..." Edward went on, nodding almost apologetically toward his sister who was enclosed in Jasper's arms.

"All we have is Bella."

Jacob snorted, and Edward corrected himself. "Bella, Leah and Jacob."

Leah, standing in a far corner of the large apartment, shifted her weight slightly.

"Leah and Jacob will not need to burn those they kill. Their bites are poisonous to vampires..."

Edward's eyes landed on Jacob and Leah in turn. He didn't need to say it, but with that look he reminded them both that it went both ways; if they were bitten by a vampire, it was death. A silent warning.

_Like we needed reminding. _Jacob thought bitterly for a moment.

Edward's eyes landed on each face before him, tactfully ignoring Jacob's thought.

"Knowing Aro, he will want an audience."

Carlisle nodded soundlessly to Edward's words; they had both spoken long into the night about Aro's character, spoken about him many times over the last eight years.

"We think Aro will want..." The smallest of movements, a twitch of his mouth, and Jacob knew that it was the need to keep Bella from breaking down that was likewise keeping Edward from doing the same. "...We think Aro will want Ness to be there. When he meets us."

Nobody said anyting, and Edward continued.

"Whether he thinks seeing us fail will be the breaking point for Renesmee, or if Chelsea needs us there to break the bonds between us permanently..." Edward shook his head. This was all guess-work, assumptions about Aro's likely actions and the extent of Chelsea's power. Educated guesses, all of it.

"Either way, he won't kill us on the spot. He will make a big production of it..." Edward snorted then, "Aro prefers theatrics."

Vladimir and Stefan let out low murmurs in agreement.

"We can't know where it will happen..."

"The dungeons, below?"

Everyone turned at the sound of Bella's voice. Normally lyrical, it was a shock since she had not spoken much in the past three days, to hear a dull whisper.

Edward looked down at her, and Jacob once again recognized that need in the vampires eyes. She was keeping him afloat, and she was doing the same for him.

"Perhaps. We won't know until we arrive..." Edward's eyes met Alice's across the room, and the little vampire shrugged.

"It doesn't matter where it takes place... there is going to be a fight tomorrow, it has been eight year's coming. And we cannot know..." Edward stopped, looking at the faces around him. Everyone knew what he was trying to say, he heard the words echoing in their own minds. There was no need to speak them out loud and make the possibility all the more real.

"Tomorrow, then." Carlisle spoke for his son, nodding once to Edward, letting him know that there was no need to say more.

There wasn't, everyone in this room knew what they were risking.

_For her. _Jacob thought to himself, and caught Edward's eye as he gave a small nod in acknowledgement of the words unspoken.

_For her._

* * *

Everyone was inside, preparing themselves.

Carlisle had made arrangements with the local hospital, the vampires would drink human blood tonight. It went against their beliefs, but it was necessary if they were to have a fighting chance tomorrow night. The fact that it was donated blood, drunk from a glass, made it no easier for the Cullens.

Jacob stood out on the balcony once more, to leave them to their dinner.

Vladimir and Stefan were out hunting. They did not have the same beliefs as the Cullens.

Leah had taken the families ferrari and was driving some way outside of the city to shift, to run and hunt and exert some built up nervous energy.

Jacob did not feel like joining her.

He felt like thinking. Thinking and remembering.

Renesmee's white velvet skin. Her bow lips, curved into an irresistible smile. The smell of her; grass and lilacs, sunshine and... her.

Thinking of her now was both a comfort, and a driving force.

His fingers were tingling as they remembered the feel of her tendril hair, when the doors opened behind him.

He turned, and was surprised to see Bella coming toward him.

She stood by his side, and he squinted against the dark to try and see her eyes...

"I haven't had mine, yet." She said, guessing his thoughts.

"Oh."

"Thank-you, Jacob." she said suddenly, turning to look at him.

He felt his insides crumple, looking at her. He guessed it was like looking into a mirror... that look of desperate longing was surely reflected in her own eyes as she stared back at him.

"You're welcome?" it was a question.

"For coming here. For helping us to..."

"Don't." he cut her off, suddenly feeling the resurgence of anger he had felt in speaking to Emmett hours before.

Hours. It would be only a few hours before daybreak, and then just the wait until nightfall... hours.

"I was always going to be here." Jacob added, fighting hard to control his voice.

"We knew that." Bella whispered back.

Jacob gazed down at her. "Did you?"

She nodded once. "I know you think we were pushing you two apart because..."

"Because you didn't want me to have Renesmee, because..." he cut her off, all control gone.

"NO!" Bella suddenly snapped, and for a moment her eyes blazed, no longer dull with heartache but fired with anger. "You stupid, foolish, short-sighted, mongrel of a..."

"Spit it out already, Bells!" he snapped back. Fury felt better than aching.

"Of course she is yours! She has been yours from the moment she was born, as much as she was mine and Edward's! Do you really think after all I have been through with Edward that I don't know a thing or two about imprinting, even if I'm not a bloody shape-shifting werewolf?!"

"Then _why_?!"

"We were trying to keep you safe!" she roared.

Jacob looked down at her, "What?" he whispered.

"Everything we did was not only for Renesmee." Bella murmured, the initial heat of anger giving way to the need for explanation while there was still time to explain.

She turned her head, turned it away from the heat of Jacob's gaze.

"We always knew that if Aro was successful in taking her you would follow... and your pack would follow you. We could never be sure that, upon sharing his plan for Renesmee with his brothers, the Volturi had not seen you as yet another motive for taking her."

"Me?" Jacob asked, skeptical.

"The Volturi would turn your imprint to their advantage. If you followed her, and your pack followed you..."

Jacob nodded now, understanding. "Guard-dogs." he murmured.

That's what Edward had seen in Caius's head that day on the baseball field, when the old vampire had understood that the wolves were not _were_wolves but shape-shifters. When Caius had envisioned such potential for the pack...

A small smile broke out on Bella's face suddenly as she studied Jacob, her head tilting to one side as she looked into his face. "Did you really think we didn't love you?" she asked quietly. "Did you think we didn't want you for Renesmee...?" she added.

"Love?" Jacob spluttered.

"Of course, Jacob." Bella reached for his hand, squeezing it.

"You are our son." she said simply, "We would keep you safe".

Jacob nodded absently, Bella let go of his hand.

"Then..." he turned to look at the city in front of them, afraid that if he looked down into Bella's face he would maybe start crying. "...You think Ness and I will be alright?" he asked in the smallest voice.

Of course he had thought about it. What if they succeeded in saving her? What if they got a chance to live happily ever after?... Could they?

"Renesmee isn't venomous." Bella said simply.

Jacob knew that, she had bitten him enough times. A memory of her teeth sinking into his neck as they lay underneath a tree in the woods caused a small sound half-way between a sob and a laugh to escape his lips.

Bella raised an eyebrow curiously, but went on. "She is no threat to you, or your pack..."

"But she wasn't to know that, for sure." Jacob guessed where this was going. "But you knew that even the possibility of hurting the others would make Ness think twice. She would never knowingly hurt someone. Never." he smiled then.

Bella nodded. "I know my daughter very well..." she whispered, and Jacob was reminded of what lay before them.

"We will get her back, Bells." he rested one large hand on her stiff shoulder.

"When we faced them the last time..." Bella was looking off into the distance as she spoke, "...I asked you to take her away, to look after her if we did not succeed..."

Jacob gave the smallest of nods.

Bella turned to him, eyes pleading. "I am asking you again, Jacob..."

He squeezed her shoulder.

"Tomorrow, no matter what happens, you get her out of there and you run... don't fight. Get my daughter and run, do you understand?"

He couldn't speak, he just nodded.

She reached up, placing a cold hand against his blazing cheek. "I love you... I love you both." she whispered.

He could not speak, he just nodded.

_For her_, he thought to himself, _and__ her_.


	14. Chapter 14

"How do you do it?"

Alec gave her a sideways glance as they walked, but waited for her to finish the thought before he answered.

Renesmee gave a small shake of her head. Somebody brushed past her and she turned her head to watch the old woman, dressed in black, waddle away down the cobbled street.

"Do they know?" Renesmee's head jerked back around, eyeing him with a mixture of curiosity and disgust.

"No." Alec replied bluntly, and then shrugged his shoulders. "Except for those under our employment..."

Gianna. Renesmee and Alec had walked passed the secretaries desk as they made their way to Volterra's town centre. Renesmee had given a little start at the smell of Gianna's human perfume, and Alec had thrown her a quick smile before jerking his head and motioning her to follow.

They had been walking around these old cobbled streets for an hour. It was a dull day, the sun hung behind the clouds. People were everywhere. It was market day, and there was a delicious tang of fresh vegetables, dough and spice in the air... mixed with the smell of human blood as it coursed through the veins of all the locals around her.

"We hunt a long way outside of Volterra..." Alec murmured.

Renesmee was hungry, and her stomach could not decide amongst the aroma's of market day, which was more intoxicating...

"How do _you_ do it?" Alec suddenly asked.

They had been slowly walking away from the hustle and bustle of stalls that lined the streets. Alec had turned a corner, and now Renesmee found that they were in a deserted alleyway, a small alcove before her with a gurgling water-fountain. Renesmee took a seat on a small bench in front of the white marble fountain, while Alec leaned casually against the stone wall, looking down at her.

"Do what?" Renesmee asked, turning her body slightly to let a hand skim water.

"Resist the urge to hunt."

Renesmee quirked an eyebrow at him, "I hunt."

"Not humans."

Renesmee gave a small nod, "No, not humans." she admitted.

"Why is that?" Alec prodded.

Renesmee watched her hand as it skimmed the water. Pennies, euros, nickels, dimes and other international coins shimmered at the bottom of the fountain. Tiny drops of glimmering light below the surface, winking up at her. Her hand brushed the water and tiny rivulets broke the calm surface underneath her hand.

"I don't know" Renesmee mumbled, keeping her eyes focussed on the rippling water...

"Renesmee? Renesmee?"

Her head jerked up and she flinched when she realized Alec was crouching in front of her, his face close to hers, strong hands holding tight onto her shoulders. She hadn't realized he had moved...had he been talking to her just now?

A golden tendril fell over one of his eyes, and Renesmee felt her hand burn with the need to reach up and brush it aside.

"Sorry." she murmured, "Were you saying something?"

A small half-smile spread across Alec's bowed lips, but his brows furrowed in concern. "Where were you just now?" he asked.

He was peering very intently into her face, and she felt her cheeks answer his inquiring stare with a faint blush.

"I was trying to think of the reason..." she mumbled.

"The reason why you don't hunt humans?" Alec prodded, and Renesmee gave a small nod.

"I think it has something to do with _them_?"

Alec's smile dropped away, he was frowning now.

_Them. _

Her family. A distant memory. Like having a song stuck in your head... it just goes round and round on a loop, and eventually the tune becomes mechanical and the lyrics have no meaning. They are just words. Her family were just... a memory.

Strange though, it hadn't always been that way.

Or had it?

She couldn't be sure.

Her family. The tune without the words.

"The tune without the words" Renesmee murmured.

Alec's hands dropped away and he took a seat beside her, still peering curiously into her face.

"What?" he asked.

Renesmee shrugged, turning her head to look at him. "A poem, I think."

"How does it go?"

"I don't remember..." Renesmee started to shake her head, and then all at once the images began to play in her mind. A memory... Perfect details sprang up from the recesses...

_She was small. Maybe three years old in appearance, but a little bit more mature than that. She was in the big study, paintings and books all around. The fire was burning low, and she sat in Carlisle's lap. He had a big blue book open in front of them. 'The poems of Emily Dickinson'._

_He absently kissed the back of her head as her small fists clumsily turned the pages. Eventually she stopped turning and slapped her hand against the page. _

_She leaned back against Carlisle's strong cold chest, her head resting neatly under his chin. She could feel the tremor from his body to hers as he started to read..._

"_Hope is the thing with feathers_

_That perches in the soul,_

_And sings the tune without the words,_

_And never stops at all." _

"I don't remember..." Renesmee forced a smile to her lips, but Alec still frowned.

"Come on." he said, rising and holding a hand out to her.

She looked up at him.

"Chelsea will be wondering where we are..." he murmured, flexing his hand in invitation.

Renesmee took it, and pulled herself up.

* * *

Chelsea was looking for them. She was just in the middle of arguing with Gianna about their exact whereabouts when Renesmee and Alec walked through the door and Chelsea sighed in relief.

"And where have you two been all day?" she asked frowning, but with a hint of amusement in her voice.

Alec shrugged, but absently squeezed Renesmee's hand, still clasped in his own.

"Here and there." he replied, causing Chelsea's eyebrows to rise up.

"Hmm..." Chelsea murmured, her eyes quickly darted to their joined hands, and then her face transformed to complete blankness as she turned to Alec.

"Jane has been looking for you." she said, matter of factly.

"Oh?" Alec didn't seem interested.

"And _I _have been looking for _you_..." Chelsea said, eyes suddenly falling on Renesmee.

"Me? Why?" Renesmee spluttered.

Chelsea hurried forward and reached for Renesmee's free hand.

"I wanted you to see the tower..." Chelsea squeezed Renesmee's hand, but eyed Alec on the other side of her.

Renesmee was suddenly caught between the two vampires. She noticed Gianna give her a hopeless shrug, and then she felt Alec's hand drop.

She wanted to reach for it again.

Alec turned his body toward her, making a point of avoiding Chelsea's eyes as he spoke to Renesmee.

"Do you want to come hunting with me tonight?" there was a small flicker of something behind his golden eyes.

Renesmee felt the blush return. "Alright." she murmured.

She felt Chelsea stir beside her, but kept looking at Alec.

"I'll find you, later..." he said, and tentatively leaned forward to brush his cold lips against her blushing cheek.

"Tonight. Okay." Renesmee squeaked.

Alec turned and headed through the doors they had just come through, back to the market place.

"Come on..." Chelsea tugged on Renesmee's arm and in a moment they were walking through the castles' maze of hallways.

Would she ever get used to this place? Would she ever be able to find her way without Chelsea or Alec pulling her along...

Winding stairways, tunnel corridors, the grey stone and whistling air that managed to slip through the crevices.

They turned a corner and came to a door.

"Up here." Chelsea said, opening the door to reveal a steep spiraling staircase.

One hundred steps later they were at the top of the tower, overlooking Volterra.

The city sloped. Castle Volterra at the top, overlooking the slanted, shingled roofs below. Beyond the city lay the rolling hills, every color of green imaginable.

The sounds of life drifted up, the soft cadence of people going about their daily lives.

"It's beautiful." Renesmee breathed.

"It is." Chelsea agreed.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to it..."

She turned to see Chelsea's eyes on her, intent.

"You will." Chelsea said, and Renesmee felt calmed by the surety.

Renesmee gave her red-headed friend a smile, and then turned back to the view.

Light was receding, long stretches of dark shadow played across the mountains in the distance. The sounds below became interrupted by the scraping of wood on cobble as people started packing up the stalls.

"Alec is very fond of you." Chelsea said suddenly, and Renesmee turned to stare at her.

"I'm fond of him too." she replied automatically.

Chelsea nodded approvingly.

"Aro is glad you are fitting in so nicely here."

Renesmee gave an absent nod, turning back to the city. "So am I."

"You don't dream of home anymore?..." Chelsea hedged. Her voice had changed. It was a question, asked very delicately.

"I don't?" Renesmee asked, turning back to her.

Chelsea shook her head. "Try and think of it, now..." Chelsea took a step toward her, and reached for her hand.

Home?

A white house flashed in her mind, but it held no real feeling of home. It was just a house, and who was it that said a house is not a home?...

"Try..." Chelsea breathed.

Home. Home. Home. It was just a word, the more she thought of it the more it lost it's meaning.

And then all at once an image of Alec flashed in her mind.

Chelsea let her hand drop, a smile playing across her lips.

"Very good." she murmured, and Renesmee reflected the smile.

The light was fading fast. Renesmee felt her stomach growl and Chelsea let out a small quiver of laughter.

"Looking forward to hunting?" she asked.

Renesmee nodded.

"Come on then..." Chelsea jerked her head toward the door they had come through. "Let's go and find your hunting partner..."

They were walking down one of the corridors when Felix suddenly turned in front of them, and came bounding their way.

"Where have you been?!" he roared at Chelsea, who flinched at the anger in his voice.

"Eradication..." she murmured, but the words died on her lips when she peered cautiously at Renesmee.

"Aro is looking for her." Felix motioned to Renesmee.

"Why?" Chelsea's eyes widened. Felix was a big vampire, tall and muscular, he rose up in front of the two women with monstrous intimidation.

"It's an invasion." Felix snorted sarcastically.

"What?" Renesmee choked.

Felix's eyes landed on her then, a menacing smile began to spread across his mouth; "The Cullen's have stopped by for a visit." he said slowly.


	15. Chapter 15

_**I am in blood Step'd in so far that, should I wade no more, **_

_**Returning were as tedious as go o'er. **_

_Macbeth, act 3 , scene 4_

It was too easy.

They had walked through the archway of Volterra and been met by two cloaked figures. They had never seen their faces, only their pale white hands as they stretched out from the fabric and motioned for them to follow.

"I don't like this." Emmett had growled as they followed a pace or two behind the menacing welcome party, through the cobbled and deserted streets of Volterra.

It was dark, but pin-pricks of light emanated from within the buildings they passed. These were the only signs of life though, the streets were deserted.

"Aro wants a spectacle." Edward replied in a low hiss.

A spectacle.

So far that meant that they weren't going to be killed on the spot. That was something at least.

They had paused at the large stone entry to the castle where the cloaked figures had disappeared.

"Are you sure Edward?" Esme's anxious voice echoed Jacob's own query.

Edward gave one small nod, and lunged forward, engulfed by the black entryway.

Bella followed, and then Carlisle and Esme. Rosalie had thrown Emmett a quick side-ways glance, and then they too were through the arch. Jasper had reached for Alice, and stepped into the dark. Vladimir and Stefan had simply glided through, heads bent to their task.

"Ready?" Leah let out a shaky breath beside him.

He turned to her now. She was pale, her eyes wide and mouth firmly set.

"Ready." he said simply, and they followed through, engulfed by the shadows within.

Jacob and Leah walked along, following the hunched forms of Vladimir and Stefan, as they made their way twisting and turning down endless corridors.

Jacob hung back a little, and kept looking over his shoulder in case their wandering party were set upon down one of these winding tunnels.

Eventually they stopped, gathered around a large double wooden door.

Each of the cloaked figures pushed the doors open, invitingly, and the small party walked through.

Once they were all inside, the doors creaked closed again, the cloaked figures nowhere to be seen.

It was a hall. Impossibly huge. At least 100 feat wide, with an expanse of grey brick all around.

The side walls were hollowed out, with a long stretch of low brass railing acting as firescreen against the roaring flames within. They did not look like walls at all, but giant kilns, from floor to ceiling.

"What is this?" Jasper whispered.

"The courtroom." Edward replied in a whisper.

A tremor of fear vibrated through all of them.

Without saying anything, they all walked in a cluster toward the back of the room, to the other solid wall where no fire burned.

The Volturi acted as judge, jury and executioner for their kind. More often than not the outcome of a hearing would end in an execution; so why not make an all purpose room for the occasion?

Edward's head lifted and looked to the large double doors at the far end of the room. A moment later, Jacob could smell them.

He turned to Leah, but she was already mid-rip, her body convulsing into wolf form.

When she was finished she looked up at him, her massive grey head looking him up and down as he still stood human.

"When I see her..." Jacob whispered in answer.

They were spreading out now, standing in front of the only fire-less wall at the far end of the room. Emmett and Rosalie, Alice and Jasper, Carlisle and Esme, Vladimir and Stefan. The fires on either side of them played awful shadows in the room, light and dark all around. It was hot, so hot, Jacob could feel the perspiration on his forehead. Leah took a stance beside him, leaving enough room beside her for when his body grew into wolf.

Jacob turned his head and observed the others.

They were all clinging to one another. Their lips were moving too fast for him to understand the words coming out...

Only Vladimir and Stefan looked detached from the whole scene. Standing side by side, but saying nothing, only staring at the double doors before them.

He shifted his gaze to Edward and Bella. Their arms were locked around each others waists, Edward's face buried in her mass of brown hair.

Jacob could hear the breathy whispers of Bella's voice, and Edward's soft hum in reply, but he had no idea what they were saying.

"Now." Edward suddenly said, pulling himself from Bella's embrace.

Everyone else did the same, pulling apart and turning to stare down the double doors at the end of the large hall.

The double doors at the other end of the room suddenly opened and a line of cloaked figures stood on the threshold.

The Cullens, Vladimir and Stefan, all at once hunched their backs, ready to pounce.

"Aro." Edward murmured at hearing the old vampires thoughts. He reached over and squeezed Bella's hand, but did not take his eyes off of the cloaked figures before him.

The fist line of five walked slowly into the room. Followed by another five and another... Jacob counted thirty in all. Inky black cloaks with the hoods pulled up to cover their faces. The thirty-strong guard stood in a rough semi-circle, and then slowly parted.

Caius and Marcus entered, resplendent in dark suits. Two tall women followed close behind, wearing light grey cloaks, the hoods down to reveal beautifully tranquil faces, and eyes lowered to the ground.

Aro came next.

He floated into the room, and stood in front of the guards, in between Marcus and Caius. He wore a similar black suit to his brothers, but his face was not contorted into a terrible sneer like Caius's, or an impossibly vacant expression like Marcus. Aro looked calm, but his eyes were lit from within.

"Welcome." he said simply, his voice was a deep baritone.

Low rumbling growls and sneers escaped the Cullens' lips. It sent a shiver down Jacob's spine, and from the corner of his eye he noticed Leah tense.

Aro took a step forward, his eyes were on Edward as he stood in the middle of their little line.

"Have you been drinking?" Aro's voice was still deep, but with a quiver of sarcasm.

All of the Cullens' eyes had changed to a deep burgundy color after the blood they drank last night. Jacob looked sideways at Edward, following Aro's gaze, and noted that the burgundy was now a brilliant scarlet red.

"Where is she?" Edward choked out, in between the low rumblings growls.

Aro's eyebrows lifted, and Jacob suppressed the urge to shift as he looked at the old vampires papery features crease in amusement.

_Not yet. Wait. _Jacob told himself. He clenched his fists against the impulse to rip.

"If by 'she' you mean..." Aro began.

"Where is my _daughter?_!" Bella screamed.

Aro's eyebrows lowered, his eyes became deep slits as his gaze shifted to Bella.

"Concentrate." Edward whispered very quietly, but Jacob was close enough to hear.

Bella's shield was working, as evidenced by the fact that they were still standing, but she was emotional. She would have to concentrate.

"She has been well looked after, I can assure you." Aro said simply.

_Wait_... Jacob warned himself as he felt the heat rise from within.

Bella growled, a low threatening shake from deep within.

"Will you really have Renesmee subjected to this?" Aro waved a feather-light hand at the guard behind him.

"Where is she?" Bella choked the words out in between growls.

Aro inclined his head slightly, "You won't walk away from this. You know that." he nodded once to Edward, who balled his fists in reply. "Isabella is your only defense. We will kill her, and then this will be over."

Bella did not blanch at the casual tone of his voice, her rumbling continued steadily.

"I am offering you salvation... if you walk away now." Aro said simply.

"Not without Renesmee." Carlisle replied this time, incredibly calm.

"I thought that might be the case." Aro replied just as coolly.

"If you've hurt her..." Rosalie's voice was cutting.

Aro did not even bother to glance at her. "We have no intention of hurting her."

"If you..." Rosalie started again, but Aro dismissed her with a wave of the hand.

"See for yourself." his head gave the smallest of nods, and the guard behind him parted once more.

The smell suddenly hit him, like a punch to the stomach. Lilacs, grass, sunshine and Renesmee...

At first all they could see was the top of a red head.

This tall woman, dressed in a tight fitting black corseted gown emerged, her hands braced on Renesmee's shoulders.

Jacob took a step forward, but Edward's warning growl stopped him.

She wore all black. Tight black jeans, black boots and a black shirt. Her copper hair fell in ringlets around her shoulders, and there was a rosy tinge to her cheeks at the fires heat.

He opened his mouth, about to call out to her, but her eyes stopped him.

A deep chocolate brown, they were unseeing.

She looked at all of them, those impossibly deep eyes landing on each of their faces in turn, but with no change.

She looked pointedly at Jacob, and he felt his heart clench into a fist as her gaze drifted past him to Leah's wolf form...

"Ness?" he breathed her name, and her eyes landed back on him, but there was no spark of recognition.

He saw the red-headed vampires hands tighten as they rested on her shoulders.

"What have you done, Chelsea?" Carlisle spoke what they must have all been wondering.

Chelsea looked to Aro who did not turn around to meet her gaze, too interested to see the Cullen's sunken faces as they stared at their daughter.

"Alec has been sedating her." Edward replied, his voice was tight. "She is too weak..."

"What?" Carlisle looked to his son, but Edward's eyes did not leave his daughter.

"She doesn't..." Edward choked on the words as they died on his lips. He took one deep breath, his eyes still on Renesmee. "She doesn't recognize..." Edward began again, but Bella interrupted him.

"Baby?" the word escaped from Bella's quivering lips. There was an odd mix of tenderness, hope and anxiety... all the complexities of that one word could only be uttered by a mother searching for her child.

Renesme stood staring back at her, unseeing, as though looking at a stranger.

"Renesmee, baby?" Bella tried again. Hope and tenderness were gone. Now she was pleading.

Edward reached out a hand, tightly gripping Bella by the arm. She had moved as though to go forward, toward Renesmee.

"No!" Edward hissed low.

Bella struggled against him and Jacob saw Edward's hands clamp down hard, denting her marble skin.

"Don't, Bella..." he continued to hiss.

But Bella's body was moving like a compass needle, seeking true north. Drawn to her daughter.

No force on this earth could keep her from Renesmee. Jacob recognized the pull, he was feeling the effects of Renesmee's proximity himself...

But Bella was their shield. She needed to concentrate, or else this battle was already lost. They wouldn't have a hope in hell if they didn't have Bella.

"Concentrate..." Edward was struggling now, he brought his other hand up and spun Bella around, forcing her to look at him. But her eyes kept drifting to the other side of the hall, to Renesmee who was watching the whole scene with a look of cool detachment.

"Please, Bella. We need you to..." but before Edward could say more, a piercing scream reverbrated all around the great hall. It was bloodcurdling, for those in the room who had a pulse.

Edward's eyes widened in horror and his hands dropped to his sides.

Bella fell to the floor in a writhing heap. She bucked and kicked, bringing her hands to her head, holding her palms flat to her temples.

The screaming continued. High and painful. It was animalistic in its intensity...

Suddenly Edward dropped to his knees beside Bella, trying to lay his hands on her.

It would do no good.

"Stop!" Edward suddenly roared, jumping to stand straight again.

Jasper and Emmett had him in a lock before he had a chance to run across to the other side of the room.

Jacob was still staring at Bella, a thrashing heap on the floor by Edward's feet. Eventually though, Jacob pulled his gaze up, and followed Edward's eyes to the opposite side of the hall, where a sweet giggle was emanating from a short cloaked figure.

The cloak's hood was suddenly tossed back to reveal a round face and bowed lips that were arched in a serene smile.

"STOP!" Edward growled, and the girl's laugh rose an octave, to mix with Bella's strangled screams.

Nobody moved.

Their shield was gone but the Volturi guard stood still.

A chill ran the length of Jacob's spine.

They didn't need to rush. The Volturi knew that Bella was their only real weapon, and now with her taken care of... there would be no need to rush.

Mixed with Bella's piercing screams came the loud ripping noise of Jacob's shift.

_Oh God. Oh God..._

Leah's thoughts rang in his head...


	16. Chapter 16

"Let her go"

Jane made no motion to indicate that she had heard her.

"Let. Her. Go."

Bella's screaming continued. Jane kept laughing.

"I said..." Renesmee turned to look down at Jane, shrugging off Chelsea's grip. Jane's round face was completely absorbed by the scene before her, "...'let her go'" Renesmee ended, her words were low but spoken through clenched teeth.

Bella continued to scream.

Renesmee closed her eyes and all at once there was silence in the great hall.

A moment passed and then she heard Bella's labored breathing... and then, the screaming continued... louder, closer.

"What...?" someone spoke beside her, but Renesmee didn't know who, and she didn't open her eyes to see.

It was a ripping scream, coming from deep inside... it was pitched high, and sounded like it belonged to a child.

Renesmee opened her eyes then, and looked down at Jane's twisted form. The girls heavy black cloak was wrapping itself oddly around her fighting body, her legs were kicking out, her arms flailing wildly...

Suddenly the girl stopped kicking. She stopped all together. Her body seemed to sink lower to the ground and all that remained of her convulsing was a small twitch in her right leg.

And then Jane's orb eyes opened and looked up into Renesmee's calm face.

"Do that again, and I will finish you, understood?" Renesmee's voice was completely level.

Jane made no physical movement.

Renesmee doubled over for a moment, feeling the reverse torture. But she saw it too. Could see Jane's thoughts as they worked their malign magic. And that's all it was... thoughts. Jane made you think you were in pain, firing the nerve-endings of your body, and triggering the sensory sensation of physical anguish. Like flipping a switch, Jane could trick the body into thinking it was being ripped apart, flesh to flesh. But that's all it was. A trick. Renesmee could see it as Jane worked her power... she could see what Jane saw as she manipulated a body into torture. And once Renesmee saw, it was easy to hold a mirror up...

Suddenly Jane kicked out again, and another high-pitched shriek ripped from the girl's lungs.

Renesmee, calm again, got down on her knees and held the girl's head steady in her hands. Her palms on the girls temples, she bent her head so that her face hovered above the girls eyes.

Renesmee lessened the pain, keeping it as a pulsing ache through Jane's body.

"You get one last chance..." Renesmee whispered.

She loosened her grip and Jane's head made the smallest of nods.

Renesmee nodded back, and slowly rose.

Everyone was staring at her.

The hall was completely silent.

_Kill Chelsea._

Renesmee's head whipped around to stare at the Cullen family, a great distance between them and her, as they stood on the opposite side of the hall. Each of them still as statues, watching her.

_Kill her._

Renesmee's eyes landed on Edward for a moment, and then she turned on her heel and lunged at the red-headed vampire who was standing behind her.

Chelsea reeled back, but was taken off guard, and toppled to the floor with Renesmee on top of her. Renesmee's hands dug into the red hair, sinking her nails into the skull. She lifted the head up, and with a loud _thump,_ she smashed it once against the cold grey stones.

When she lifted the head again she felt Chelsea's body stir beneath her own, and quickly Renesmee brought the head down for another shattering thunk against the stone floor. This time, her fingers felt the smashed bone, where it had now sunk into a spongy mass. Chelsea's body twitched.

In a flash Renesmee had jumped up from the body. She got her hands underneath Chelsea's armpits and proceeded to drag the squirming carcass... dragged her to the large fire, where the orange flames licked the stones. Renesmee lay Chelsea's body horizontal to the fire, then stepped around to Chelsea's side and proceeded to role her into the flames... as she did so, she felt the woman's hand reach out and grab Renesmee's arm, the long slender fingers digging into her skin. Renesmee fell on her backside, and as she did she kicked her leg out, her heeled boot digging sharply into Chelsea's calf.

One last push and Chelsea's body was engulfed by flames. Renesmee watched as the woman suddenly sat bolt upright, and then make a move as though about to jump out... before emitting a strangled, useless scream, and succumbing to the flames.

Renesmee, still sitting listlessly by the fire, suddenly wondered why no-one had made a move to stop her. She just brutally killed one of the Volturi's most prized vampires. Why had nobody come to rescue Chelsea...?

It was then that Renesmee heard the sounds around her. She had been so single-minded in her vicious attack, that she had not noticed.

Now, she slowly turned around, and saw the battle going on around her.

It had begun.


	17. Chapter 17

Everything happened at once, in slow motion.

Nobody moved as the small vampire kicked and thrashed on the floor by Renesmee's feet. The Volturi guard did not move an inch. Aro wasn't even looking as the girl convulsed on the floor by his feet, the old vampires eyes were trained on Renesmee the whole time.

"Get it back up Bella, now!"

Jacob turned his head and saw that Bella was huddled in Edward's arms, her eyes shut tight. Jacob could not feel any change in the air around him, but judging from the look of painful concentration on Bella's face, her shield was working again.

"Edward, what is she..." Carlisle began.

Jacob's head snapped back to the scene before them. Renesmee was now crouching on the ground, her face inches from the rumpled heap of cloaks on the ground.

They couldn't hear what she was saying, they were too far away. Jacob could see her lips moving...

"I don't know!" Edward hissed.

Jacob turned his his head again, Edward and Bella were standing now, Bella's head resting on his shoulder for support. Edward had a hand protectively on the small of her back, but his eyes were still across the room, looking at his daughter.

"I wonder..." Edward whispered.

Jacob kept moving his large head back and forth, looking from Edward to Renesmee and back again.

_What's happening?_ he heard Leah whisper.

_I don't..._ Jacob began, but he became too absorbed in the scene before him to finish the thought.

When he turned back to look at Renesmee, for just a second, her eyes connected with Edward's.

Jacob let out a small growl of enquiry, but then it was too late.

He looked back, but Renesmee was gone.

Everything moved in slow motion then.

Across the wide expanse of grey stone they watched the Volturi's side in silent astonishment as Marcus turned to Aro, opened his mouth wide, and went for his brother's throat.

Everything happened at once.

There was a flurry of movement on either side and suddenly Jacob's legs were carrying him forward.

_This is it, this is it..._ He didn't know if they were Leah's thoughts, or his.

They met in the middle. A crash of bodies suddenly folding into one another, their lines blurred.

He couldn't see Renesmee. His eyes kept searching for her even as he lunged and snapped, his massive jaw locking down on anything within reach.

He couldn't find her. There were too many bodies, shadows from the fire danced on the walls and in front of him swirling masses of black cloak all around.

No Renesmee.

He kept moving, pouncing, side-stepping and snapping. His jaw kept connecting with marble, and biting down ferociously.

_Behind you_!

Jacob whipped around and heaved his huge bulk against the figure, knocking it to the ground where Leah was waiting to pounce. He heard the searing sound of torn flesh.

His head lifted once more.

No Renesmee.

Amongst the fighting forms he thought he caught a glimpse of Edward and Bella, still toward the back. Bella was standing erect, behind Edward.

A body moved in front of him and Jacob bit down, then crawled forward to get a better glimpse.

Edward was stalking in front of Bella, protecting her while she kept the shield up.

_Jacob!_

Too late, something crashed into him, rolled with him along the stones.

A marble vice-grip had him pinned and he yelped.

_Hold on!_ Leah screamed within.

A cold, sickly sweet breath tickled his nostrils and he felt sprays of spit freckle his face.

A low hiss came from the heavy stone on-top of him, and Jacob struggled against the cold.

Suddenly the weight was lifted.

Jacob let out a whooping, panting breath, and then scrambled back onto all fours.

Just in time he saw that it was one of the Volturi's guard who had saved him.

_What the hell? _Leah thought momentarily before being distracted and skidding back into the heat of battle.

It was a cloaked figure who had pinned Jacob, and another black cloak who had saved him.

What was happening?

Jacob leaped forward, following Leah back into the battle where he took stock of his surroundings.

He caught glimpses of the Cullens. Flashes of them amongst the fray of fighting. And then, every now and then, he became aware that there were vampires wearing black cloaks who were turning on one another.

Still, his eyes couldn't find her.

No Renesmee.

Where was she?

Hands suddenly dug into his back and he whirled around, teeth bared as he emitted a deep rumbling growl.

Jacob snapped his mouth but the vampire was quick, and side-stepped out of his reach.

Jacob moved forward, and the vampire had no choice but to move back.

As best he could, Jacob gave a wolf-smile, at seeing the look of horror that passed over the vampire's face as his back pressed up against the stone wall. Cornered.

_Gotcha!_ Jacob thought triumphantly.

And then another thought passed through his head, not his own.

Forgetting his cornered prey, Jacob turned his large head in time to see Leah fall on her side. She made a move to get up, but a huge muscular vampire placed a foot on her neck and she was forced to remain still. Still, as another equally imposing vampire with jet-black hair knelt beside her, lowered his head into her gray fur, his mouth opening wide...

Something dug into Jacob's neck and he thrashed, shaking off the vampire he had momentarily forgotten about.

He threw out a large paw and the vampire collapsed before him, not even able to emit a scream as Jacob's jaw tore out his throat.

And then he was leaping over fighting bodies, crawling on his belly to reach Leah. He recognized the two vampires. Guards. Felix and Santiago.

Bodies parted and he caught a glimpse of the two large vampires as they darted off, and Leah, a limp heap of fur on the ground.

He bound forward and was at her side. Bodies kept moving and fighting all around them, and he let out a shaky sigh of relief as Leah emitted a quick yelp when someones foot accidentally trampled on her tail. At least she wasn't dead.

Jacob got behind her and set his mouth to the scruff of her neck, dragging her back toward the fireless wall.

Away from the heat of the battle, he came around in front of her to shield her body in case they were suddenly set upon.

She wasn't dead, but she wasn't in good shape.

The gray fur of her stomach was a sticky red mess.

He bent his head and began to lick at the drying blood.

_Don't._

He stopped and looked up to see Leah's beady wolf eyes on him.

_The venom._ She explained, and he drew his head back.

_I should never have let you come. _He said evenly.

Her thoughts sounded strained, and she couldn't quite make her meaning light-hearted: _Like you could have stopped me..._

_What will I tell Seth? _Jacob's voice caught on the name. _How will Sue...?_

Leah's large head rolled to one side, she panted, and Jacob could feel the pull she was under...

_Don't, Leah! _He warned as he felt her leaving.

_Sorry, Jake. _She whispered.

_You dumb, stupid, stubborn... _He began, but stopped instead to listen to her heavy breaths. They were further apart.

Suddenly she changed. There was no loud ripping, she just melted back into human form. Her formidable grey wolf fur slowly receded into skin, and the hard lines of her jaw parted into red lips.

Jacob had to concentrate hard against the adrenaline pumping through his veins to do the same.

She lay before him, naked and gleaming in a cold sweat. The teeth marks were already a black bruise on the side of her stomach. Jacob reached out a shaking hand and touched the spot of the bite mark, and Leah convulsed in pain.

"Jesus, sorry..." he began.

He bent closer and saw it was not a bruise at all. From each tiny indentation he could trace a protruding blackened vein... and it was growing. Venom. The venom was spreading, and fast.

"Leah..." he whispered.

She reached for his hand that hovered above her wound.

"Jacob..." she whispered in reply, and he bent closer to her head to listen to her words.

She didn't say anything. Her lips met his in a gentle kiss.

It felt like a long time before he pulled back to look down at her with wide eyes.

"You were mine, but I wasn't yours..." she whispered, explaining.

Explaining everything. Why she had come to Italy. Even further back, why she had joined his rogue pack in the first place. She had told him that she simply "had to", and he thought it was to do with Seth. Or only because she couldn't be around Sam anymore. He was wrong. So wrong. She had to, because she was drawn to him... the same way he was drawn to Renesmee. Was it his love for Ness that meant he had never realized who Leah's imprint was?

She saw the flash of understanding in his eyes, and forced a smile on her now white lips. "It's okay." she whispered, and he saw her chest sink.

"Leah, don't, you're going to be alright..." as he said the words she drew one shaky breath and then no more. Her eyes were unseeing. Open, but blind. Her hand lay limp in his own.

"Leah!"

Her name came out in a strangled cry. He squeezed her hand once more, and then heard the ripping. Adrenaline pumped quicker and he was on all fours again, emitting a deep growl.

He saw him somewhere in the middle of the fray, Felix's jet black head bobbing in the middle of a fight.

Jacob didn't see anyone else. He leaped into the mass of heaving, stepping, lunging bodies and his jaws locked on Felix's torso. He shook his head and felt the bones crunch in his jaw. Reluctantly, he opened his mouth and the pieces fell out. He made to go for Felix's head, but his eyes caught on Santiago as he lunged forward, toward Jacob.

Jacob leaped forward at the same time as Santiago.

His giant paws were weighing on the large vampires chest, and Jacob could feel the body beneath him ebb.

He bent his head low and locked his jaw around the bloodsuckers head, his teeth sinking into eye-socket.


	18. Chapter 18

His body kept moving.

Lunging. Pouncing. Biting. Snapping. Heaving. Rolling.

He kept moving. His limbs felt heavy, his jaw remained slack and he could feel exhaustion seeping in. Worse than the pain in his body though, was the hollowness in his thoughts. Leah was gone. Leah was gone. She was dead. There was no voice in his head except his own. The loneliness of it was incredible. Even as he fought, even as he struggled to keep moving, that gaping loss was at the back of his mind, gnawing.

His jaw clamped down on a leg. All faceless now, how many had he killed? Were they dead? Were Edward and Carlisle right, and he did not need to burn their bodies?

Amongst the still moving masses were limbs. Bloody and twitching, some still moving, others crawlings like insects.

He looked down at the vampire before him. Still. Like marble. Dead. They had been right.

But how many had he killed? Not enough.

_Keep moving. _He thought. _Dammit! Keep moving!_

Something caught his eye.

Across the other side of the room...

A flash of sapphire.

Rosalie.

Jacob bent his head and sunk his teeth into a convulsing torso, but kept his eyes on Rosalie, easy to spot amongst the black cloaks for the sapphire sweater she wore.

His head lifted as he watched. He was too far away to do anything, so he watched.

Demetri. Jacob recognized him. Rosalie had not noticed him behind her.

She was watching Emmett tear a limb with his bare teeth. She was standing beside him ready to pounce on anyone who took advantage of his momentarily crouched position, his back to the fight.

She was guarding Emmett, but nobody was guarding her.

Jacob let out a high howl, but Rosalie took no notice as one of Demetri's hands wrapped around her throat, his other arm locking around her waist.

Only Esme turned her head at Jacob's howl, and followed his gaze.

"ROSE!" Esme screamed.

Emmett's head jerked up, just in time to watch Demetri twist her body... torso one way, head the other.

Rosalie's beautiful oval face rested on her shoulder, neck gone limp, eyes wide and staring.

Jacob could feel Emmett's growl all the way from here... it vibrated through his own body.

Demetri was too quick. Still holding Rosalie's limp body he jumped back. A giant leap, more like, and Emmett stumbled clutching thin air where Demetri and Rosalie had just stood.

Esme was running now. Jacob could see her, but his eyes were transfixed on Demetri...

Rosalie's hand suddenly balled into a fist. Her eyes were still wide, her head horribly lame.

Jacob could see her body flexing. Could she do it? Could she twist out of Demetri's grip and...

All the way from here he could hear it. Teeth on bone. Ripping flesh. Demetri's mouth clamped down on her exposed neck and then jerked back, covered red.

"NO!"

Emmett's boulder form crashed to the ground.

Demetri had simply turned and deposited Rosalie's body into the flames of the kiln fire beside him. And then... his face turned back around to lock on Emmett's crashed form.

Something hissed behind Jacob.

The last thing he saw before everything went black was Esme standing in front of Emmett's hunched form. Esme, her body shielding Emmett against Demetri's advance...

And then everything went black.

_Blackness all around._

_Sounds of the fight._

_Pinpricks of light in his eyes, dancing across his skull._

_Black._

"JACOB!"

_Was Leah here somewhere?_

_Shards of light penetrated his mind and stung._

_It was everywhere._

_Inky darkness._

"JACOB!"

_Darkness clung to him._

_Suffocated him._

"JACOB!"

_Pulled him down._

_And further down._

"JACOB!"


	19. Chapter 19

Renesmee slowly stood.

She took in the scene around her.

The bodies were like waves, rolling, crashing and plunging into one another.

She looked at the fighting sea before her.

She felt the swell in the pit of her stomach.

Jacob.

His name came to her, a life-raft offered in the sea of confusion.

Jacob.

She had seen him.

He was here.

"YOU!"

A boulder slammed against her side and sent her sprawling on the ground.

Before she had a chance to move, Caius's head floated into view, searing red eyes staring down at her.

He stood with one foot on her chest, pressing down. She heard a small pop within her chest, and was suddenly gasping for air.

The left side of Caius's face was streaked with a line of blood, she couldn't tell if it was his.

"You!" he accused again, pressing his foot a little bit heavier.

Her arms suddenly flung out, her hands reaching up to wrap around the foot that was pressing down. But he was too strong, too heavy. And she couldn't breathe...

"What have you done your filthy little half-breed...?" he sneered down at her.

She kept looking up at him. A halo of light suddenly sprayed around his head, and she heard another 'pop' in her chest.

"The time has come Caius."

She didn't recognize the voice. All she knew was that the weight was gone. She could breathe.

She was gulping for air.

"I should have known you would come..."

She heard Caius's deep growl, and struggled to sit upright.

She watched as two hunched, black figures stalked toward Caius. Their backs were to her, she couldn't see who they were.

"Kill me, it won't bring your coven back..." Caius's voice had a hint of laughter.

"No." one of the hunched figures agreed, still stalking forward.

"But it will leave _your _coven vulnerable." The other completed.

"Ripe for the taking." The other one again.

"What's left of it."

Both hunched forms laughed, and then suddenly lunged forward.

Caius's legs buckled, and he collapsed underneath their combined weight.

Renesmee turned away from the gory scene, using her arms to crawl further away from the three of them as the smell of sickeningly sweet blood hit her nostrils.

She kept crawling, the fire was against her back, an inescapable heat. She was drenched with sweat, but kept crawling forward.

Bodies were everywhere. Fighting, fallen, blood-drenched bodies everywhere.

Russett.

Jacob.

A flash of russett fur amongst the black cloaks...

His huge wolf form launched into the air, pinning Santiago to the ground.

His neck stretched out, his head lowered...

Jacob.

It was Jacob.

She saw him, amongst the tidal wave of bodies.

She saw him, and suddenly there wasn't enough air in the room.

She saw him, and suddenly she could breathe. She was gulping in lungfuls of air, as though she had been underwater all this time and was now breaking the surface.

Her head was spinning.

She tried rising herself up with her arms, but her chest felt bruised and concave, and the effort had her gulping for air in earnest.

"Jacob..." she tried saying his name, but it came out in a strangled whimper.

"ROSE!"

That voice, loud and terrified, reverberated all around. Enormous when compared to her feeble attempt...

She recognized the voice, but could not lift her head to see its origin.

Suddenly the ground shook underneath. She felt the reverberations course through her body as she lay splayed out on the stone cold floor.

Laying on the ground, her eyes found his russett form again.

She breathed a sigh of relief and felt that her chest rose more easily with the effort.

"Just give me a second..." she grimaced, trying again to raise herself up.

She kept her eyes on his large russett form.

"I'm coming..." she said through clenched teeth, her arms shaking with the effort of lifting her own weight.

She saw him suddenly. An inky black cloak, hood pulled down, to reveal his golden curls and bowed lips.

His eyes were no longer a deep amber, as they had been earlier today. Now, they were burning scarlet. And those burning eyes were on Jacob... striding toward Jacob.

"JACOB!" She screamed, wincing against the beating pain within.

Alec stalked up behind him, his hand outstretched...

She closed her eyes, clenched her teeth together and pulled herself up. The air rushed out of her, she ignored the thumping ache in her chest.

She opened her eyes, standing now she had lost them in the crowded fight.

"JACOB!" she screamed again, and began lunging forward.

She fought against the bodies, pushing and shoving past.

Her eyes kept seeking out russett, searching for him...

_Jacob. Jacob. Jacob._

She reached out with everything she had...

Russett.

Alec had him by the scruff of the neck, she could see his eyes were rolled up into the back of his head and his tongue was hanging out.

His entire body had gone limp. Alec crouched over his large russet form, the vampires mouth salivating with the promise of blood.

"JACOB!" Renesmee screamed his name.

Alec's head jerked back and his eyes locked on Renesmee's as she ran towards them.

_Mine_

Renesmee heard Alec's voice, though he had not spoken, she could not have heard him above the noise anyway...

Alec's eyes locked on hers, and then turned back to Jacob's head in his hands.

_Mine!_

She heard Alec's voice again and knew he was talking about her.

"JACOB!" Renesmee screamed again, knowing it was futile. She knew what it was like to be under Alec's spell.

Her feet carried her forward and then she was standing still in front of them.

Alec emitted a deep growl when she made to step forward. She stopped, and Alec's head lifted to stare into her face.

Why couldn't she go for him? Why had she not lunged forward and attacked?

"You feel it too." Alec answered her silent question.

Renesmee flinched at the intrusion, but did not take her eyes from Jacob's head, concentrating on Alec's hand as the fingers dug deep into Jacob's fur.

"It's not just me." Alec said. His voice had changed.

He was holding onto Jacob's head, fingers digging deep, a thin line of blood ran down Alec's thumb. But his voice. It was full of tenderness.

"You feel it too." Alec said, confirming the sinking feeling in Renesmee's stomach.

She shook her head and Alec's hand suddenly jerked, and Jacob's head with it.

"Don't!" Renesmee gasped, watching as Jacob's head landed on the stones.

"Say it!" Alec roared.

"Wh-what?" Renesmee had just gotten the words out, when she heard the reply.

_You want me!_

Alec's lips were not moving.

_I knew it the moment I saw you on the road. _

"That was Chelsea..." Renesmee hedged, and Alec's hand flicked again, bringing Jacob's head to crash against the stones once more.

Renesmee choked at the sight.

"No it wasn't!" Alec growled.

Suddenly Renesmee was nodding her head, tears streaming down her face. She could not take her eyes off of the small puddle of blood that had formed underneath Jacob's head.

"Yes" she whispered, and took a step forward.

Alec said nothing.

"I feel it too..." she tore her eyes from Jacob's head, and brought them reluctantly to meet Alec's eager gaze.

She was standing beside Jacob's limp form.

"You were so kind to me..." she whispered, still looking into Alec's eyes. "...I was so scared and you were so sweet..."

She put a hand out, touching fur. She felt blindly along, feeling for Jacob's large paw.

"I know how you feel..." Renesmee kept talking, Alec's tender face were not watching her hands.

She grasped his paw, held it tight in her hand. She couldn't be sure but she thought she could feel the faintest echo of a pulse, and let out a quick sigh.

Alec's hand slackened.

"...I feel it too." Renesmee kept whispering, but she squeezed Jacob's paw.

Not shifting her gaze from Alec's, she showed Jacob again. Again and again and again. Urging him to wake up. Urging him to fight agains't the pull of it.

_You're stronger,_ her thought to him, _open your eyes, just open your eyes..._


	20. Chapter 20

_Jacob_

In the darkness, he heard her calling.

_Jacob_

Black all around, but her voice was a pin-prick of light.

_Jacob_

He wasn't alone anymore. She was here.

Renesmee.

_Jacob_

Everything would be alright.

_Jacob_

Everything would be alright.

The black walls slowly began to collapse. They tumbled and fell, his vision overpowering the darkness.

He opened his eyes.

Everything came back into harsh focus. All at once he was back in the great stone hall, fires burning all around, their heat tickling his skin, while the stone cold floor underneath sent a shiver down his spine.

He blinked once, and moved his head to the side.

Renesmee.

_Ness_

She couldn't hear him. She wasn't looking at him.

He felt her hand squeeze his paw, and his heart suddenly inflated.

"I feel it too." she whispered.

Jacob blinked again, but did not move a muscle.

He could feel the bloodsucker behind him, could feel his hand tangled in his fur.

_Jacob?_

He blinked, but Renesmee wasn't looking at him.

_Jacob, can you hear me?_

For one instant he thought it was Leah, and his heart thudded.

_It's me, Ness_

The thudding continued, at a racing gallop...

His mind ticked over. Her hand squeezed his paw again, and before he could realize it was useless he was replying to her, silently.

_Yes. I hear you. I see you, Ness..._

_Don't move._

Her voice came high and clear in his head.

_Alright. _he replied cautiously.

"I don't want to hurt you..." Renesmee was pleading with the vampire Jacob couldn't see.

_Who is that? _Jacob thought.

_Alec. _

He didn't have time to wonder how she was able to reply to him. The second that name escaped her lips, his heart began to beat viciously against his chest. His mouth started to salivate with the promise of biting down on that...

_Wait. Stop, Jacob, just let me..._

He wasn't listening now. He was too far gone.

Every muscle in his body coiled, ready to spring with his massive weight.

For a moment he listened to the rapid beat of his heart, counted the thudding promise... one, two, three, one, two, three, one...

He whipped his head around, his jaw slashing against the white marble it locked onto with a satisfying crunch.

He shook his head back and forth, felt cold hands scrape down the side of his face, felt the flesh through his fur tear down with the racking nails...

Suddenly there was a loud ripping sound, followed by an audible 'pop'.

Jacob held a weightless stone in his jaw.

He opened his eyes and watched with satisfaction as Alec clutched at the spot where his right arm had been.

The vampires eyes flashed a deep burn, and suddenly Alec sprung, launching his body flat against Jacob's massive form. Alec's mouth became a spitting, biting trap, teeth slamming wildly as he tried to get at Jacob's neck...

Jacob kept thrashing, kept moving his head, but could feel the jagged teeth grating against his neck, in another moment they would sink in...

Above Alec's slapping jaw, Jacob could hear Renesmee...

_Don't move, stop moving Jacob!_

He reluctantly surrendered his body to Alec's thrashing.

And then suddenly Alec's weight was lifted off.

Jacob sprang to his feet in no time, and came to stand on all fours, swaying only slightly.

Renesmee was crouched beside him, her eyes on Alec's sprawled form.

"Brother!"

Jacob heard the high-pitched scream somewhere behind them, but didn't take his eyes from Alec as he watched the vampire pull himself into a crouched position.

_She's mine_. Renesmee's voice came loud and clear.

He saw her turn around, out of the corner of his eye.

_Be careful. _Was the only thing he had time to think, before Alec kicked off from his back feet and came flying at Jacob.

Alec landed neatly in front of him, and Jacob felt the fur on his back spring up. His lip curled, and he let out a thunderous growl.

"Mongrel!" Alec hissed hysterically.

Jacob lunged forward, twisting his head and locking his jaw around Alec's torso.

All at once, his knees buckled as Alec's elbow slammed into his shoulder-bone.

Jacob let out a small yelp and slackened his jaw.

Alec twisted out of the steel trap, but not before bringing another solid blow down on Jacob's head.

For a moment Jacob could see nothing but shadows.

"She_ is_ mine..." Alec's cold breath licked against Jacob's cheek, made his eyes water, and his heart thump uncontrollably.

_Big mistake. _Jacob thought sadistically.

Alec's hand wrapped itself in Jacob's fur again, pulled his neck back. And Jacob let him. He even swayed slightly, and heard Alec give a small chuckle.

"Stupid mutt...!" Alec hissed, the specks of saliva hitting Jacob's cheek.

Jacob let out a piercing howl as his neck suddenly snapped up, his teeth locking around Alec's face and pulling down, hard.

Alec let out a small whining sound as Jacob's teeth sunk in.

The ripping sound rang in Jacob's head as he pulled down.

The jaw came free, and Jacob spat it out, heard the thick bone bounce on the ground at his feet.

Jacob licked his massive tongue around his mouth, tasting the sweet slickness. Too sweet, it burned his mouth.

Alec shook his head back and forth, and Jacob watched in fascinated horror as the remaining shreds of skin wobbled with the effort.

Alec flexed the muscle that was protruding, but nothing happened. He couldn't talk, only emit a low humming sound to let Jacob know he didn't appreciate the extreme makeover.

Jacob let his lips curl back while he emitted his wheezing wolf laugh.

_This ends, now. _He thought, stalking forward.

Alec's eyes narrowed into two red slits.

"AAARGHHHH!"

Jacob's massive head whipped around at the sound of Renesmee's cry.

He turned back quickly, and side-stepped around Alec, narrowly escaping the vampires clutching hand.

Jacob was behind him, and pounced before Alec could fully turn his body.

Jacob rose up onto his hind legs locking his jaw around Alec's neck, feeling spinal chord, and yanked down.

The body dropped with a solid thunk on the stone floor, and Jacob started dragging him backwards, knowing he was close when he felt the fire singe his fur.

Jacob dragged the body, and with one massive kick of his head, threw Alec into the flames.

_Jacob..._

He lifted his head, ears flattening against his skull at the sound of her voice, but she hadn't called out loud.

She was in his head.

_Jacob! Help!_

He let out a deep growl, and plunged forward.

_I'm coming, Ness... hold on, I'm coming..._


	21. Chapter 21

Jane and Renesmee were circling each other. Stepping over the bodies and body parts that lay sprawled on the ground, their eyes never left each other's fierce gaze.

"You should have finished me when you had the chance." Jane whispered, her plump lips lifting into a serene smile.

Renesmee said nothing, just kept circling.

Circling, and watching,

Watching Jane's thoughts.

Renesmee winced as she felt her arm burn. As though someone had just stuck it into one of the licking flames. She could feel her skin blistering.

A quick glance down with her eyes reassured her. Her arm was whole. The pain was not really there.

"I did say I would finish you..." Renesmee replied casually, and this time her mouth turned up when Jane's eyes widened and her jaw clamped shut against the pain.

Renesmee slackened her hold when the burning in her own arm cooled.

"What _are_ you...?" Jane bit the words out, trying to regain control of her facial features, trying to smooth the contortions Renesmee's pain had caused in her face.

Renesmee let out a shaky breath as she felt something like shards of glass rake across her back. "I am..." she breathed, trying to fight against the pain, "...my _father's _daughter..."

Jane let out a piercing scream and Renesmee replied with a sighing breath when she shards recoiled.

She couldn't keep doing this forever.

She had caught Jane off guard the fist time, but now the Botticelli incarnate was fighting back. And seeming to enjoy the challenge.

"AAARRRGHHH!"

Renesmee let out a piercing scream of her own as something sliced across her forehead. It felt as though her skin was being pulled back...

She closed her eyes and sent similar jolts of blinding pain Jane's way, and was satisfied when the girl replied with a scream of her own.

And then she was laughing. Actually _laughing! _A low, serene chuckle.

"My brother is finishing off your dog as we speak..." Jane said, between giggles.

"No!" Renesmee winced at her words.

She couldn't see Jacob and Alec from where she and Jane circled. She couldn't concentrate on Jacob and keep her mind on Jane at the same time. She could only hope that Jacob was holding his own against Alec...

"Yes." Jane said, matter-of-factly. "And when my brother is finished with Fido, you will have the displeasure of feeling our combined force." Jane smiled, and Renesmee felt a twisting stab in her gut. She didn't know if it was Jane, or merely the effect of her words.

"I'll have him keep you conscious enough to feel _everything_, but powerless to stop it..." Jane sang the words.

"Alec won't do that to me." Renesmee spat out.

_Jacob. _She thought for a moment, surrendering to the pain in her gut to reach out to him.

"My brother's infatuation with you was nothing more than Chelsea's doing." Jane said these words with a little too much force.

Renesmee played on Jane's desperate conviction.

"Really? Your brother seemed to think differently..." Renesmee let the twisting in her gut continue as she showed Jane Alec's liquid gold eyes. As she replayed Alec's bitter words "_I know you feel the same way_" spoken just moments ago.

The pain that flashed across Jane's face in that moment was more satisfying than anything Renesmee could have imagined.

"NO!" the little girl screamed indignantly.

"Oh yes..." Renesmee tried a little chuckle herself, but only managed to exacerbate the pain in her gut. As though someone were twisting a metal sword around and round.

"No, no, no!" Jane continued to bellow, her eyes flaring black. "My brother loves _me_!" she screamed, and Renesmee collapsed to her knees with the pain.

_Jacob! Help!_ she screamed silently.

Jane pulled on her hair, yanking her head back to look into her incredible eyes.

"Alec loves _me_!" she whispered low, exposing teeth.

_I'm coming, Ness... hold on, I'm coming..._

Suddenly Jane's eyes left Renesmee's face, lifting to see something.

No.

_Jacob, she's... _but Renesmee was too late.

All at once the pain in her stomach lifted and Jane was gone.

Renesmee whirled around and saw Jacob's wolf form collapsed in a writhe-ring heap on the ground, twisting and convulsing as Jane stood over him.

"NO! JACOB!" Renesmee screamed, rising to her feet.

She launched herself at Jane, who was too hell-bent on sending rocking spasms through Jacob's body to pay attention to her. The little girl's thoughts were consumed with the knowledge that her brother was dead.

Renesmee had her pinned to the ground, but Jane's eyes were still on Jacob where he lay a few feet away from them, still kicking with the pain.

She had been so tired a moment ago. Her mind had been sagging under Jane's malicious weight. Her abilities deflating with each bout of raw pain Jane inflicted on her and Renesmee likewise threw back.

But now, with Jacob convulsing from the pain... she felt strong again.

Suddenly Jane's body twisted underneath her, and Renesmee heard the comforting pant emitting from Jacob.

Renesmee locked her hands around Jane's head, and kept her eyes locked on the girls burning irises.

It didn't take much. She sent pulsing waves of pain through the girls body, and in between the racking spasms she merely said "Alec is dead".

Soon Jane was limp... either from the pain, or because she was giving up.

"Alec is dead!" Renesmee spit the words out.

Jacob suddenly appeared, he nudged her arm with his nose, but she kept her hands locked around Jane's head.

"He's dead!" Renesmee screamed down at Jane's slack face.

Jacob nudged her again, harder this time, but she was beyond noticing.

"Dead! Dead! _Dead_!" Renesmee screamed.

Suddenly she was knocked flat on her back, panting, the wind knocked out of her.

She lifted her head, and then lay it back down when she saw that Jacob was dragging Jane's rag-doll form toward a wall of fire.

_Enough._

She heard the words, but didn't know who they belonged to.

_We surrender. _

Renesmee blinked, and felt cool hands lifting her up.

"Tell them, we surrender."

Marcus. His eyes were burning black as they looked into her face.

"Wh-what?" she whispered in a shaky breath.

"Renesmee, tell them to stop fighting." Marcus said, with a nod.

Renesmee blinked again, and then noticed Sulpicia standing beside Marcus. Her eyes were wide, and she was clinging to his arm.

She felt a burning heat, and realized that Jacob was by her side.

"Tell them..." Marcus said, his voice soft with pleading. "Please?"

Suddenly Marcus's cold hands were gone, replaced by an encompassing warm embrace. She hadn't even heard the ripping sound...

Jacob's arms were around her, her head tucked neatly under his chin.

"Tell them, Ness." he whispered.

She was so tired. Her body was as limp as Jane's had been at the last...

"End this, Ness..." he breathed, she felt his sigh underneath her cheek.

She closed her eyes.

She breathed.

She buried her face into Jacob's strong chest and she opened herself up...she reached out and held onto everything in the room. She sent the word out, and she hoped and hoped that they would listen.

_Enough!_

_Enough!_

And it was.

Renesmee held onto the thoughts for a few more minutes, repeating Marcus's words of surrender as he whispered them to her.

Every now and then she interjected with her own pleading. "_Stop, please stop_." though she didn't know if those words were meant for anyone in particular or for everyone...

It was enough.

Those left still standing, still fighting, stopped as her words pulsated...

And then she could do no more. She was so tired, she hoped that they had listened...

"No more..." she murmured into Jacob's chest, and she let herself collapse entirely into his arms.

Jacob bent down, putting one strong arm behind her knees and picking up her sunken body to cradle in his arms.

"You did good, Ness... you did good." he murmured into her hair while he rocked her.

She opened her eyes, her head still nestled against Jacob's chest. She took a hesitant look... and wished she had kept her eyes closed.

The fires burned low and the smell of searing flesh hung thick in the air with the billowing smoke...

Broken and torn bodies lay everywhere. Some were rock solid, others twitching in the final throes of...

She closed her eyes again but the smell reminded her of what was still there. She gagged and felt the burning bile rise up...

A low wail cleaved the air all around. It gashed and tore at her insides. The sound was awful, it was constant and intense and...

"I know, shhh honey, it's okay now."

Jacob rocked her, murmuring into her hair "I've got you, you're safe, it's okay..."

The wailing continued, pitched low and deep... it took Renesmee a moment to realize that the sound was coming from her.

"I've got you, it's okay..."

And he did. She clung to him, sunk her nails into his bare chest, felt the broad expanse of him slick with sweat and blood and now her tears... she couldn't stop, she gave herself up to the sound.

It shook her insides, clawed at her throat, but she gave herself up to it.

She felt him shake with it then too. Felt him collapse a little against her, and then she didn't know who was holding who and who was clinging...

"I love you, I love you, I love you..." she didn't know if her words made any sense through the broken sobs.

"I will speak with..." Marcus's voice sounded far away, she couldn't be sure, but she thought he said 'Edward'.

The thought lingered somewhere in the back of her mind.

Family.

_My family._

But she couldn't let him go, she couldn't let Jacob go long enough to...

"For what has been lost here, I am sorry."

Marcus's voice, cool and sincere.

She bit her tongue against her cries, she listened to Marcus...

"You have suffered a great loss. I could never even begin to understand..."

She heard a snarl and knew it was her father.

Loss?

What was lost...?

And then she saw. She closed her eyes but it was there. He had seen everything and now she could see...

Rosalie. Her body eaten by the flames.

Esme. Ripped apart for her son.

Carlisle, following her into the darkness...

All gone. Her family was never to be whole again...

"I know." Marcus again, and the high hiss of a female responding to her father's growling...

"Surely you can see. You know we had no part..." Marcus was cut off by her father's voice.

"I see. I know. We are done here."

And then hands, cool hands pulling her up, pulling her from the warmth...

Jacob made a growling noise, but her father's voice was strong and close.

"Give her to me." not sinister, not angry, just... pleading.

Jacob's heat was gone and she fell into a cool embrace.

"My baby..." the velvet voice that had tucked her in so many nights of her young life...

"Daddy!" tumbling from her lips, the word was a balm in itself.

"Oh, my baby, my heart..."

More hands, cool and hard. Her mother's breath, a sweet tickle against her cheek, blistering the tears that had run down her flushed face.

Her mother couldn't say anything, instead she felt her arms wrap around her and her father, trying to fit them all in...


	22. Chapter 22

They passed her from hands to hands, each taking it in turn to carry her away from that place.

Once, she opened her eyes to see the stone castle receding into the distance, and breathed a sigh of relief when it was lost to the horizon.

She passed from hot to cold, and back again.

Their hands were a promise, wrapping around her, cradling her.

Her weight in their hands was a promise too. She was safe. They would never let her go...

Once, she had tried to speak of who was not there.

"Not yet honey, not yet..." her mother had whispered, before she had to turn her face away.

When they thought she was asleep, the gentle vibration of the car's engine beneath her, she listened to them talk.

"We killed them. We watched them burn." - her uncle Jasper.

"Just as you told us to..." - Alice, her voice had a hard edge.

"We had no choice. I saw what they were planning from the moment we sought them out... it would have started all over again. Vladimir and Stefan would have picked up where Aro left off..." her father spoke with a velvet certainty, and then there was silence in the car.

She didn't know where they were going, only that they were going...

* * *

She woke once, their hot bodies were pressed close together, blazing.

She didn't know where she was, but there were bells chiming in the distance and a hum of life further away.

She moved her head and saw that he was looking down at her, his face unreadable.

She wondered if she had been dreaming.

"Jacob..." she whispered.

And then her eyelids became heavy again, and she succumbed to the pull of exhaustion.

* * *

The bed held only her heat. Jacob was gone.

Her heart began to flutter with the question... and then calmed back down to its normal erratic pace when she heard his voice coming from the room upstairs.

"Did you see?"

"Yes." Her father's voice.

"Maybe she is repressing the memory..."

"No, Jacob."

"How do you know?"

"Marcus showed me."

"And you _trust_ him?"

She heard her mother's low growl. "Jacob, do you really think he would have taken the risk of lying to us at that point...?"

She heard Jacob pacing. His foot-falls heavy.

"You're sure?" Jacob asked, his voice small all of a sudden.

"Yes." Her father's voice back to velvety reassurance.

What were they talking about?

The mention of Marcus brought the old vampires face into her mind. He and Sulpicia, clinging to one another, begging her to...

She blinked back tears as all the memories poured in at once.

She was still too tired for this.

She closed her eyes and let sleep have her once again.

* * *

She dreamed.

A collection of vivid memories, strung together in her sleeping subconscious.

Rosalie, sitting behind her, pulling a brush through her tangled curls. It felt nice.

Sitting in Carlisle's lap, her head resting on his shoulder and the hum of his words pulsing through her body as he read to her... Esme playing the piano, a lyrical accompaniment to Carlisle's words. Occasionally her grandparents had torn their eyes away from the black and white keys, from the words on the page, to share a secret look with one another... locking eyes over the top of Renesmee's head.

Even Leah had a place in her dreams. Leah, never entirely apart of the family but always in the shadows, watching Jacob.

So real. They still seemed so real... she felt for sure that she could reach her hands out and...

She woke then.

She was still alone.


	23. Chapter 23

There was nothing left to say.

He told them he was sorry for what they had lost, and they told him the same.

There was still more to come... Sue, Seth and the rest of the pack to tell...

But for right now, there was nothing left to say.

They were waiting for her to talk.

So far she had only dreamed.

Their faces played across her sleeping thoughts; Rosalie, Carlisle, Esme, Leah... over and over and over. Round and round.

It was a dream of longing and sadness and it cut him to watch it again and again. But he didn't want to leave her side. He didn't want to stop touching her, stroking and holding her, reassuring himself that she was with him.

And he had to watch. He had to see if she would... if she would dream of what had passed. He had to know.

But it was only ever their faces. Rosalie, Carlisle, Esme, Leah... over and over, round and round.

* * *

Eventually he reconciled to ask Edward.

Her dreams were focused on what was lost, but perhaps Edward had seen something in her thoughts at the Castle.

"They didn't."

Jacob closed the door behind him, and looked up.

Edward and Bella were seated on the long white sofa, clinging to one another. Bella's head rested on Edward's shoulder, one of her arms slung securely around his middle. Both of his arms were wrapped around her shoulders.

Jasper and Alice stood by the window. The little pixie standing in front of him, his arms wrapped around her.

Emmett was... who knew? When they got back to Rome, he left. Nobody tried to stop him. Jasper and Edward needed distance from their brother's black thoughts and bottomless emotions. They had their own to deal with.

"They didn't touch her, Jacob." Edward said again.

Jacob let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding.

"Did you see?"

"Yes." Edward's voice sounded strong.

"Maybe she is repressing the memory..."

"No, Jacob."

"How do you know?"

"Marcus showed me."

"And you _trust_ him?"

Bella let out a small growl. "Jacob, do you really think he would have taken the risk of lying to us at that point...?"

He began walking back and forth, to one side of the room and back.

"You're sure?" he finally asked, not bothering to look up.

"Yes." Edward still sounded certain.

Jacob shook his head. Why? Why after all of that...

"Jacob, would you sit down?" Edward asked slowly.

Jacob stopped walking, his head lifted and his eyes bore into Edward's still reddened gaze.

"What?" he asked in a small voice.

Edward let out a small sigh, and slowly disentangled himself from Bella.

She didn't resist, and Jacob thought he saw something in her face... she knew what Edward was about to say.

Edward crossed to where Jacob stood, and reached for his hand.

"Marcus showed me why Aro didn't put his plan into effect..."

"Why he didn't have one of those filthy bloodsuckers..." Jacob couldn't even finish the sentence.

Edward nodded.

"Why?"

Edward squeezed the blazing warm hand he held, but Jacob barely noticed.

"Because, Renesmee was already pregnant when she arrived in Volterra..."

He blinked and became aware that he was sitting on the hard wooden floor, something cold on his face.

He blinked again and saw that Bella held his face in her hands, red eyes peering deep...

"What?" he barely managed to get the word out.

"They could hear two distinct heartbeats within her... once Aro saw that you were the father he was sufficiently curious about the child of a half vampire human and shape-shifting wolf to amend his plans and see her pregnancy out before having her mate with one of the guard..."

Everything after the word 'father' was white noise.

"What?"

Bella's hands pulled slightly, and his gaze was forced from Edward's cold expression to Bella's burning eyes.

"You saved her." she said, softly.

"What?" seemed to be the only thing Jacob could think and say.

"There is nothing for her to repress, Jacob..." Edward spoke, but Jacob kept his eyes on Bella, "Two days after she arrived in Volterra they could already hear the beat of a life..." Edward creased his brow for a moment, "...although Marcus admits he heard it louder than anyone. Perhaps his natural gift to feel relationships meant that he could..."

"They didn't touch her?" Jacob croaked the words out.

Bella shook her head. "They didn't touch her".

There was nothing left to say.

Now, they just had to wait for Renesmee.

* * *

"Emmett's gone home."

Alice's eyes were wide and deep as the vision came and went.

"Then we go home." Edward said simply.

Funny how he suddenly sounded like Carlisle.

"What about..." Jacob didn't have to finish the sentence.

"She'll talk when she's ready. Maybe going home will help her too..."

So they left the next day, on a plane bound for Washington.


	24. Chapter 24

She awoke asking for her parents.

Their faces were her first thought, and in a moment they had bound up the stairs and were sitting on the edge of the large white bed.

She slept in the grand white house, in Carlisle and Esme's room. She missed their smell.

She would have slept in Rosalie and Emmett's room... but her uncle had locked himself in there, she didn't want to disturb him, no matter how much she craved her Aunt's rose-petal fragrance to trigger happier memories.

Edward shook his head when he saw what she wanted to know. Bella raised her eyebrow.

"You don't need to think of it ever again..."

"But I do." she said simply.

"Ness..." Bella tried.

Now she was shaking her head, and felt the threat of tears. "If I don't talk about it. If I just let it sit inside of me..." she shook her head again. "I don't know what will happen."

They couldn't argue with that.

"You and Jacob..." Edward murmured.

Jacob had told Sue and Seth. He said they couldn't have brought her body home... the truth was he didn't want to. He didn't want Sue to see Leah's blackened corpse, heavy with the venom. It wasn't long before Seth had seen though. Jacob had stayed in wolf form for two days now, intent on feeling every ounce of pain and loss that his pack experienced... Seth especially. The young wolf had seen his sister's death through Jacob's memories. Edward knew, from hearing Jacob's thoughts, that if there had been any way he could have saved the kid from having to see that... but there wasn't. So Jacob had remained linked to all of them. He wanted to know everything of their pain. But really, he was just punishing himself.

"What...?" Edward started to ask.

Renesmee closed her thoughts off to him, showing only a brick wall.

She wanted to say this out loud. Like there was healing in the words spoken...

"Marcus. Why did he turn on Aro?" Renesmee tucked her knees up, hugging them to her chest.

"Sulpicia." her father replied simply.

"What about her?"

"She was Marcus's mate, originally. Aro had Chelsea break the bonds between them."

"Oh." Renesmee breathed. So much she hadn't known at the time...

"I expect that family feud was a long time coming..."

"Chelsea..." Renesmee's thoughts had already skipped ahead.

Edward nodded once. "She was very powerful..."

Renesmee could feel the hot pin-pricks of threatening tears.

"I didn't think she could break the bonds of family though..." she murmured.

Renesmee sat in the middle of the large bed, Edward on one side. He reached out now, taking one of her hands and looking intently into her face.

"Because Alec kept giving you mild doses of the anesthesia. He had been doing the same thing to Marcus for decades... no wonder he always looked so..."

"What?!" Renesmee couldn't keep the pain and surprise from her voice.

"Alec." he replied simply.

She blinked back the tears. She wanted to talk about this, but she didn't want to think about Alec... she didn't know her feelings yet. Had she cared for him, just a little? Was it only Chelsea's doing? A combination of Alec and Chelsea's power? She didn't want to... thinking about Alec as something more than a monster was a conundrum she could push aside for another day. Or lock away in the deepest part of herself, to never think of again. Either way, not now.

Suddenly Bella had pulled herself up onto the bed, and was sitting next to her. She wrapped one cold arm around her daughter, and Renesmee leaned her head against her mother's solid stone shoulder, but kept her eyes on her father's face.

"Chelsea..." she started again.

She let the brick wall crumble as she showed her father. Replayed for him. The way she had smashed Chelsea's head against the stone floor.

"Why did I do that?" Renesmee asked.

Edward and Bella exchanged a look that Renesmee couldn't interpret.

"What?" she asked, pulling away from her mother slightly.

"Why do you think you did it?" Edward asked, slowly.

Renesmee shook her head. "I... I don't know..." she creased her brow and replayed the moment again and again. Turning around, knocking her down, fingers feeling the crushed skull...

Renesmee shook her head again. "I thought..." she began.

"Yes?" Edward urged.

"I thought I heard someone..."

This time Renesmee definitely noticed a look between her mother and father.

"What?!" She demanded, heat rising with her voice.

"I wasn't sure but I thought..." Edward's brow creased.

"Daddy?"

His head snapped up when he heard the quiver in her voice and saw her thoughts were tainted with anxiety.

In a flash he was on the other side of her, cradling her just as Bella had.

"When Jane started torturing your mother..." she felt him cringe, "...I thought I could hear you..." he stroked her cheek with a feather-light touch, looking down into her wet glassy eyes, her mother's eyes. "I saw what you were doing... I saw you reading Jane's thoughts and mimicking them back to her, I could see you reading her mind".

What?

She hadn't remembered...

Yes.

It came back to her. A flood of memory. She showed both of them. Her mother and father, showed them how she had held a mirror up to Jane's own twisted mind, used her power...

"My God." Bella breathed.

Bella reached a hand out to cup her daughter's face, turning it so she could look into her chocolate brown eyes.

"How?" she whispered to Renesmee, but Edward answered.

"Your very own version of fight or flight..." Edward murmured.

"What?" Bella and Renesmee both asked at once, turning to look at him.

"An acute stress response of the nervous system... your body was under such pressure, you became better equipped to defend yourself by having your power grow..." Edward murmured. He sounded like Carlisle, going off on medical jargon tangent. The comparison made mother and daughter both wince.

"But that isn't mine..." Renesmee whispered.

Bella kissed her forehead, "you are your father's daughter..." she whispered back.

Edward shook his head. "Perhaps it was always there, over time it may have grown... but you were thrown into a situation where your body needed something more to protect itself..."

Renesmee frowned, remembering. How many times had it happened? She thought she had heard Marcus, once. Alec too... and she heard her father telling her to kill Chelsea. Always during highly stressful moments.

She suddenly remembered her original question.

"I killed Chelsea because you told me to..." she said.

Edward stopped talking and looked down at her, giving a small nod. "I suddenly thought that if we could break the bonds she had formed..."

"That's why there was such chaos..." Renesmee murmured, "why they started fighting with us?"

"And against each other." Bella added.

"Even Renata turned against the family..." Edward said, "They were all held together so loosely. No real bonds, no real love..."

"Not like us." Renesmee ended.

She started crying then, let the tears spill out. She cried for what they had lost, and it all came back. She watched her father's thoughts, his memories. Saw what he saw as Demetri ripped into Esme, trying to get to Emmett... had ripped her to shreds. Carlisle and Emmett were too late when they finally... Renesmee choked on the tears, but they kept coming as the memories poured into her head. Carlisle had lifted Esme's broken body and walked with her in his arms, into the flames...

Bella and Edward were stroking her, cradling and rocking, humming soft words. It would do no good. She saw it all again and again.

"I'm sorry..." Edward whispered. "I'm sorry you have to see..." but he couldn't stop thinking it, and Renesmee couldn't help but see it.

This was apart of her now. She would have to live with it. Live with what she had done... what was sacrificed for her.

* * *

Jacob still wasn't back come twilight. When the sky turned purple and succumbed to the darkness...

Renesmee wandered out to the front porch, a pair of Emmett's dark denim jeans in her hand, deciding to wait for Jacob there. He hadn't spoken to her since they got back two days ago... but two days ago she hadn't been talking either.

She would ask him now, ask him to shift back so she could speak with him. Tell him things she couldn't tell her family. What he would do with the information, she didn't know. She could only hope that he would understand.

Emmett was there, sitting on the last step.

He looked so unnaturally small, folded in on himself.

Nobody had spoken to him since they got back.

Jasper and Edward didn't need to, to have some idea of what he was going through... but none of them could really know. No matter how much they knew his thoughts, felt his emotions. Jasper who was so attuned that he was also walking around like a broken man, folded in on the pain, admitted to not really being able to grasp the depth of Emmett's loss.

They heard him. In their room. The noise he made... it was an empty cry, calling for her.

Nobody had spoken to Emmett since they got back.

But he had spoken to Renesmee.

He came into Carlisle and Esme's room last night, while she was still drowsy with sleep, he had sat on the edge of her bed and reached for her hand.

She had curled away from him. She couldn't bring herself to look at him... all she could show him was how sorry she was. He had lost all that was dear to him, because of _her_... it would never be enough, but she kept showing him how sorry...

He had put a strong hand on her shoulder and pulled her to a sitting position. His eyes were hollow as they stared at her, but burned with an intensity she could not look away from...

"You were worth it!" he said in a low hiss.

Renesmee closed her eyes and felt the tears burning behind. She shook her head, but Emmett shook her right back, making her teeth rattle.

"Look at me, kid!" he snapped, and she did. God it hurt, but she opened her stinging eyes and looked at him...

"Rose always knew... always knew you were worth the fight. She sacrificed herself for you, knowing that you were worth it!"

"No!" Renesmee spat out.

Emmett slackened his grip, but kept a hold and kept looking into her eyes.

"Yes." he said, simply

He shook his head, "Love them, always. Miss them. Blame yourself all you want even though there's no point..." Emmett stopped shaking his head then, "...but never, _never _think for one second that Rose or any of us would have done any differently." he let go of her and slowly stood.

"Because she always knew..." he murmured, before turning and walking out of the room.

Now, looking at him folded in on himself as he sat on the bottom step... Renesmee wondered, as she had last night. Was Emmett capable? He was sad enough, felt empty and lost without Rosalie... but was he capable? Carlisle and her father had once said that there was not so many ways for vampires to kill themselves. So was Emmett capable? Could he walk into the flames as Carlisle had done...?

Renesmee walked the last few paces to the steps, and then sat down beside him.

She tentatively posed the worried question toward her uncle...

"Would if I could, kid..." Emmett didn't turn to look at her, but reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing tight, "...But I promised Rose once that I would always look after you, and I can't very well do that if I'm dead." His voice had caught on her name, and his grip on Renesmee's hand slackened.

He slowly stood, looking off into the dark woods... and then he sprinted toward them. Gone in a second. Renesmee could hear the sound of him crashing through the trees into the deep darkness.

Suddenly Alice was sitting where Emmett had been a second ago. Renesmee hadn't noticed her, too intent on the spot in the clearing where Emmett's boulder form had disappeared...

"He won't want to hear it for some time..." Alice whispered, nodding toward the same clearing Renesmee was watching, listening to the trees falling. "...But I see someone in his future".

Renesmee turned and peered into Alice's face. Her seeing eyes were wide and serene as they looked into the distance...

Alice reached for Renesmee's hand and squeezed, cold on hot, she kept looking into the dark woods, kept listening to Emmett's torture.

"She'll be waiting for him, and when he is ready, he will find her..." Alice ended, and let Renesmee's hand drop.

Renesmee raised one eyebrow and sent a silent query Alice's way.

Alice shook her head in response, but then suddenly an image flashed in Renesmee's mind.

Tanya.

Blonde, tall, elegant, beautiful Tanya of the Delani clan...

Renesmee was taken aback by the clarity of her cousin's face as it appeared in her mind.

When the image of Tanya faded Renesmee saw that Alice was peering into her face curiously.

"You _are _your father's daughter..." she whispered, slowly.

Rensmee shook her head slightly.

"Jacob's coming..." Alice whispered, before Renesmee could say anything.

Alice's hands were cupping Renesmee's cheeks, and she quickly planted a kiss on her forehead. "Good to have you home..." Alice whispered, and then she stood and danced away, closing the front door behind her.

Renesmee looked back to the dark distance, and listened.

She smelt him first.

Wood-smoke, grass and dog... Jacob.

In a moment the large russett wolf was walking slowly forward. Renesmee saw two brown wolves, Embry and Quil, wait by the clearing, seeing Jacob safely home before turning and dashing back.

Renesmee stayed seated on the front steps, watching Jacob's slow approach.

Finally he came to sit, haunched before her. His large wolf eyes looking into her face. Neither of them moved, just stared. They hadn't spoken since she got home, not really. What was there to say?

"I'm sorry..." Renesmee whispered, and felt the first tear slide down.

Jacob cocked his large head to one side, ears pricked high, he made a low whining voice.

Renesmee sniffed. She showed him an image of his human self, and his large head gave a small nod.

A ripping sound ensued, and then Jacob was peering down at her.

She handed him the jeans and he slipped into them.

He didn't make a move, just stayed standing in front of her, looking down at her.

"I'm sorry..." she whispered again.

"I heard you." he said simply.

She let out a shaky breath. She expected this... he'd spent two days as a wolf. Listening to the packs thoughts. Listening to Seth, after he'd shown him Leah's death. The senseless brutality of it. All for her. Leah's death, all for her. He'd had to tell Sue and then see what Seth saw, his mother's catatonic state, rocking herself back and forth as the tears slid down...

She was expecting this. But it still hurt all the same.

"I don't know what to say..." Renesmee huffed, feeling the tears wet on her cheeks.

"I don't think there's anything..." Jacob started, and it cut her. It twisted in her gut and wrecked her insides.

She let out a low moan and doubled over on herself, clutching at her stomach, though she knew the pain was a little higher...

She shook her head, unable to stop the babble of words escape from her lips. "It's all my fault. They're all dead because of me... They were right, I am an abomination, I was always going to kill them, it was eight years in coming..." she couldn't stop now, it was too easy to let the words fall out. "My family. Your family. I have always hurt the people I love, it's who I am and now you all have to suffer because of it... oh God, oh God, oh God..."

And then she was on fire. Burning, searing, blistering...

He held her in his arms, and she burned.

Their heat burned her, melted them together, his arms around her a burning heat she couldn't escape...

"I'm so _sorry_!" she spat the words out, and when that wasn't enough, she showed him. Rosalie, Carlisle, Esme, Leah, Seth, Sue... showed him what she had to be sorry for.

And then she couldn't hear her own thoughts against his thunderous Alpha voice.

He was yelling at her, a deep thunderous thing rumbling from within in... he was yelling at her.

"NO! Listen to me, listen to me!" he roared.

He was shaking her, and she was forced to open her eyes and stop the images.

Suddenly his hands were stroking her face, willing her to focus on him.

"Ness, Ness listen to me..." he urged.

After a moment, when her cries were no more than a soft murmur, he talked, and she listened...

"This was never your fault. Never. Do you understand? Lord knows you are the daughter of Bella Swan and will never completely accept that, but its the truth..." his eyes were blazing, black and furious as he spoke. "I blame myself for Leah's death, and maybe that's not right either but it is what it is... the one person I can never, _never _blame though is you."

She opened her mouth, about to argue, but he didn't let her.

"You are loved Ness, deal with it. We all went through hell and back to keep you safe and we'd do it again in a heartbeat, even after all that we've lost..." his thumb absently stroked her cheek, "... because it's _you_, Ness. It's you. You're apart of us and we wouldn't have it any other way, we couldn't... we are all bound to you, and I don't care that you think that means we're all doomed and always have been. I just don't care, Ness. Because I know it's not true, and so do your family, so did Rose, Carlisle and Esme. God! They knew it! You are the best part of any of us... me, especially... and I can never be sorry for loving you, could never blame you..."

She stopped him then, with a kiss.

She reached her hands up, her fingers entwining in his hair, she pulled him to her and the flames consumed them.

Her lips parted and he groaned with her, his hands pressing against her back, pushing her against him...

When they parted, she put her head to his, and closed her eyes.

"I still don't know what to do." she whispered.

He pulled his head back and looked into her face, raising an eyebrow.

She shook her head slowly, "I was going to tell you that I'm sorry..." he opened his mouth, about to say something, but she brought her hand across his lips, clamping them shut. She continued; "...I was going to tell you that I'm sorry, for everything, and more... but I am really sorry because despite all that... Knowing that I am all wrong for you, because we will never have a happy ending. Things will never be easy for us, because all the old arguments still hold, Jake... you can't leave the pack, and we can't ask them to go on shifting and never aging when the people they love die..." Now he was really struggling, but she held firm and kept talking. "Despite all that... I love you. I want you. Forever. You and me, I want it... I nearly lost it, I nearly lost you... and I know I can't do without. I just know." She let her hand fall, but Jacob was silent.

She sighed, her shoulders lifting and falling with the effort. She looked down, avoiding his searing gaze. "So, I'm sorry... I won't give you up, even though I know it's the right thing to do..." she forced a smile, but it came out all wrong, "Guess I have even _more_ in common with my dad..." she murmured.

"Ness..."

She looked up then, and was surprised to see a small smile on his lips.

Suddenly, she was furious, and she let him know it... let him see it. After all that had happened? He was smiling? He really didn't have any idea what lay ahead of them? What sort of pain he was going to put the pack through...?

She opened her mouth, but now it was his turn. He reached up, and clamped his hand over her lips...

"I am leaving the La Push pack." She struggled, but he kept one arm around her waist and his hand firmly clamped down over her mouth, "I am going to let Embry step-up... I don't know what's going to happen to them once we all leave for Scotland, maybe there won't be any need for Embry to... but the point is, I am leaving the La Push pack. I am going with you, where ever you go."

He loosened his hand, and she pulled her head away to give him a quick, deep bite on the hand...

"Ouch!" he yelped, still smiling.

"So I am supposed to just watch you die over the next few years?..." she screamed.

Jacob shook his head.

"Then what? What do you want me to do, I can't leave my family, not now..."

Jacob kept shaking his head, and she stopped talking. There was something in his eyes, in his smile that stopped her from saying another word.

His arm tightened around her waist, and he kept peering into her chocolate eyes.

"I said, I am leaving the _La Push _pack..." he whispered.

"What?" Renesmee croaked.

"There's a new pack that needs an Alpha..." he continued.

The memory played at the edge of her conscious thoughts. Just on the tip of her tongue... a hazy memory, of Marcus. Marcus and... _two heartbeats_.

Before Renesmee had a chance to open her mouth Jacob placed a broad, hot hand against her still flat stomach, a huge grin splitting his face.

**THE END.**

_I was not left drifting. A new string held me where I was. Not one string, but a million. Not strings, but steel cables. A million steel cables all tying me to one thing - to the very center of the universe. I could see that now - how the universe swirled around this one point. I'd never seen the symmetry of the universe before, but now it was plain. The gravity of the earth no longer tied me to the place where I stood. It was the baby girl in the blond vampire's arms that held me here now. Renesmee._

- Breaking Dawn_ by Stephenie Meyer. Chapter 18 'There are no words for this'. Page 360_


End file.
